Substitute
by KageOkami-Kogo
Summary: Can both universes be saved? Or is one really doomed to die? What of Olivia's baby? Will Lincoln be there this time to save Olivia and her son when they needs him the most? Post-3x18 and goes AU, exploring the possibilites and what-if's.
1. Chapter 1

**Substitute**

**A/N**: This story goes AU from Fringe, after 3x18 "Bloodline" into my own little "what if this happened next" type of story-world. This is my take on the theory that Walternate is sneakier than he makes us believe XD. Yes, yes, it is one of _those _stories lol. Serious - sappiness, angst, drama, a bit of action maybe? Its not fringe without something weird, right? Etc... Like it or else!

If this story had to have an opening song, it'd probably have to be "Nobody Loves You" by Garbage...

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><p>Her mother had gone home already, having been nearly forced to by her daughter; it had only been a day and a half since the whole rapid-preganacy deal, and now Olivia lay in her hospital bed, alone, feeling uncertainty and anxiety creep up on her as she watcher her son dose in her arms. 'Who were those people? Why did they want my baby so badly?' she thought in distress. Then, another little feeling stirred within her. Would she be able to take good care of this baby? This baby who wasn't planned yet somehow utterly loved? A soft knock on the door pulled her out of her thoughts but before she could answer, the door opened a crack and familiar shockingly green eyes peeked around the corner.<p>

"Hey," Lincoln said simply. He pushed the door open with his foot, his hands stuffed in his jacket and an almost shy smile on his face. He had come back to check on her as soon as his report was done, and not nearly soon enough if the look on her face was an indication to her mood.

"Hey..." Olivia responded with a tired smile, trying to hide her worry. She did this quite often, tried to keep all her worries and stresses from showing, to not worry her friends, to not worry _him._ But, as usual, Lincoln caught on immediately.

"Sorry I couldn't be here earlier, being the new boss has its disadvantages..." Lincoln explained. He frowned then, he had noted something was off with Olivia right away but it wasn't until she spoke that he realized how deep it ran.

"That's okay, I understand," Olivia said distractedly. She tore her eyes away from his, still unwilling to let him see how she felt.

"Are you okay? Can I come in?" He asked, concern tinging his tone.

"I'm fine, come in," Olivia replied, her poker face still up, trying to convince him that she really was okay... and maybe herself as well.

It didn't work.

Lincoln frowned agan as he walked in. "Something _is_ wrong, isn't it? What is it?" Lincoln prompted, walking over to sit on the seat her mother had occupied a few hours earlier.

"Do we have any intel on who abducted me?" Olivia asked instead. Lincoln knew she was avoiding the question but played it her way anyway.

"No, none yet, it's as if they dropped right out of our radar. We found where they kept you but none of the equipment was there anymore. They packed up and left without a trace..." Lincoln answered, eying the child in her arms curiously. He saw how tense she was and wondered if it had something to do with the child more than the people who took her. "Is there anything else?" he asked, his eyes shifting back to look into her's. He could still see that she was troubled and he wished he didn't have to get information out of her like this. It was like pulling teeth!

"Do you... think I'll make a good mother?" She asked him softly, suddenly. There, it came out.

Ah, so he was right. "Absolutely," Lincoln answered without hesitation, his gaze not leaving her's.

"How can you be so sure?" Olivia's eyes clouded with the uncertainty she felt.

"Because... because you're you," he shrugged. "You'll be a great mom, and I'll be right here with you to spoil the crap outta the little guy," Lincoln smiled lopsidedly. When in doubt, revert to a goofball... that was Lincoln's motto anyway. Not that he had any doubt about his confidence in Olivia, mind you.

"Funny, Charlie said the same thing..." Olivia smiled back.

"H-oh boy, then that kid is gunna be spoiled rotten!" He grinned.

"Oh, of that I'm sure," Olivia agreed in amusement. The two lapsed into silence, neither knowing what else to say. While Lincoln stared at his hands resting over his knees in his slouched position, Olivia watched her son sleep.

"I was... so scared..." Olivia thought she didn't hear him right. Lincoln? Admitting fear? It was true that he was usually the more serious about his job in the group, but he was also usually so gung-ho, so sure of himself... sorta like her actually. What was even more startling was how wide and troubled his eyes where, even if he was still staring at his hands. "I thought you were going to die..." Lincoln went on, his eyes lifting back to her's.

There was a pause before Olivia answered. "Me too," she admitted just as softly. She really was scared, terrified, she was almost certain she was going to die. The only comfort she got in that at the moment was the promise Lincoln made to save her son.

"Are you- are you sure you're okay?" He asked cautiously. He looked like a wreck, almost like he did the night before. It broke her heart. He was supposed to look relaxed, cocky, goofy... he wasn't supposed to look this stressed! That was _her _job!

"Linc, I already had one mom in here repeatedly asking me that, I'm fine, I promise... I'm just a little worried about the future, but who isn't?" She said, trying to lighten the mood. Luckily, it seemed to work a little; she was rewarded with a weak smile and a nod of agreement. But then his face became serious again.

"You know I'll always be here for you, right?"

Olivia's eyes softened and she smiled. "I know..." there was another pause where they simply stared at each other. She didn't want to, but she had to, "Did you mean it?" she finally asked him, her question so quiet he almost had to lean forward to hear. Maybe it wasn't the best time to ask... then again, she wasn't sure it was the right time to drop that bomb on her that night either! She knew she didn't really need to ask him either, somehow she knew he was dead-serious, he never lied about that kind of thing. And somehow... she had always kind of known, deep down inside, after all, he had kissed her once before, when they first started working together. If _that _kiss didn't let her know how he felt, then she was like a mirror - dumb, blind, and deaf.

"I did," Lincoln answered simply, immediately, though not quite anywhere near his normal loud and cocky tone.

"I... see..." Olivia looked away and frowned thoughtfully. Maybe it _was_ a bad idea to ask him... what would she say to him? Her eyes turned back to his, he had such a deep look of hope, what was she going to say? She didn't feel the same! ...Did she? At this point, she really wasn't sure. "Lincoln... I..." Oh God, why did she have to deal with this now? Wasn't her life complicated enough? She shouldn't have asked.

"You don't have to say anything right now, okay?" He told her quickly. It was funny how well he knew her. "Just know, that's all. If you don't feel the same, that's okay, I-I'll still be here for you, whatever you need..." Lincoln explained. He knew he felt like a sissy right now, being all mushy – which was something he normally wasn't – but his heart wouldn't let him shut up at the moment. "I just had to tell you, had to make sure you knew before... before you were taken, you know? I've loved you since I first laid my eyes on you, that kiss I gave you... it wasn't just a fling, I meant it. I'm sorry if you don't want to hear any of this but I had to say it." Olivia stared at him with wide eyes but before she had a chance to say anything, he suddenly stood, giving her an awkward smile. "Look, I um, I should go and let you rest..."

"What?" Was he serious? He drops that bomb on her and he decides to leave now? "You don't have to, you know," Olivia protested. Was it because of her? Probably. She knew he wasn't the type to run away from something, anything, but maybe he had to think about all of this alone just as much as she did. She didn't fault him for that.

"No, you need to rest, you've been through a lot and I'm keeping you up... I'll see you again tomorrow, okay?" Olivia didn't _want _him to leave, felt an almost intolerable feeling of panic she had to smash down with the thought of being left alone and him not with her to keep her safe... which was just absurd to begin with, she was perfectly capable of taking care of herself, but knew it was probably the right thing to do. Maybe she really _was _tired...

"Alright... I'll... see you later, Linc," Olivia relented. Lincoln saw the disappointed look in her eyes, watched her shoulder slouch, and oh how much Lincoln wanted to go over there and hold her, promise her everything will be okay and that he'll be back, but he knew that would be bad at the moment, so instead, he stuffed his hands in his black jacket and left. Olivia sat there, feeling more lost and disorientated than she had before he walked in. She knew it wasn't the time to think about these things but... then again, maybe it was never the right time to think of it? At least, when it came to him...

What did she feel for him? She wasn't sure, she was _never _sure what she felt around him. It was always kind of foggy. Lincoln Lee was always an awesome friend and partner, along with Charlie, that much was true. Though, with Charlie, it was more established that they had a brother-sister type relationship. But Lincoln... it was different with Lincoln somehow, though they teased each other just as siblings would, something about the way he looked at her, leaned toward her when they talked, spoke of something more... intimate. Why hadn't she seen it before? Maybe she did... maybe she saw it but refused to accept it, because she was with Frank. Olivia was not blind to the subtle jealousy that escaped Lincoln when he tried to hide it... she was aware of it but never acknowledged it. She cared for him, she always had, but she never thought about him further than 'just friends'... after all, she _had Frank_, and then she had whatever it was she had with Peter... but both men were no longer a part of her life anymore, were they?

Peter... there were odd feelings that went with the thought of him. During her time over in the other universe, she had spent enough time with him to understand why the other Olivia wanted to get him back so badly. Not for the first time now she felt a rather strong pang of remorse. She didn't, she _couldn't_ hate or even dislike the other Olivia, no matter what the Secretary said of the other universe... it was still her, wasn't it? So she understood the feelings they had for each other... because she felt probably a shadow of what she felt for him as well. Peter... would he ever know of his son? Probably... things have been getting so messed up and mixed up lately that anything and everything was possible really. She just hoped he wouldn't hate her, well, she just mostly hoped he wouldn't completely reject the baby... _his _baby.

Somehow though, she knew that wouldn't happen. So she knew where she stood with Frank and Peter... but where did she stand with Lincoln? It wasn't like she _couldn't_ feel the same way, after all, he had all the qualities she looked for in men. Smart, charming, loyal, and... attractive... he certainly _was _attractive... but she never noticed him before. Frank and Peter had been all those things too... but they weren't exactly loyal in the end, where they? Then again, they had reasonable reasons to do the things they did. Though, she _still _didn't understand how Frank could just leave her like that. On the other-hand, Lincoln knew of all the bad things she'd done, recently and in the past, and never once stopped being there for her. So why _couldn't _she feel the same way?

All this confusion and questions without answers was starting to give her a headache. Maybe right now wasn't the best time to think about all that. Maybe Lincoln was right and she needed to rest... after all, in a few hours her still nameless son would be waking up again.

Olivia looked back down at her baby. The baby Lincoln and that man... what was his name? Hubert? Harry? Henry? Right, Henry. Lincoln and Henry had helped her deliver it. Henry... what would she have done without the kind man? She wasn't sure Lincoln would have been all there if he had to do what Henry did. Henry, not a bad name. "Henry... what do you think baby-boy?" Olivia whispered to her child, caressing his tiny fuzzy head. The child in her arms fidgeted a little in his sleep, gurgling softly before he settled down again. Olivia smiled and kissed his little head gently. "Henry it is."

_TBC_...

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><p><strong>End AN**: I have a feeling she's going to name him Henry... I could be wrong, but I would if I were her so I did! So there! Just want to let you know, this story does NOT end here... I have plans. Please let me know what you thought!


	2. Chapter 2

**Substitute**

**A/N**: See? I told you the other chapter wasn't the end :) shout-outs are at the bottom. Also, I just want to let ya'll know, I'm a HUGE Peter/Olivia fan :D but then Lincoln showed up and stole my heart... so now there's a tie... oh, also also, I don't know how protocols related to pregnancies in hospitals work so please bear with my ignorance for a bit, okay? Enjoy?

I managed to write this chapter pretty fast but that doesn't mean every chapter will be _this _quick! Still, even though I have the tendancy to get writer's block, I _intend_ to update rather regularly.

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><p>The next day found Olivia relatively rested. She had no doubt been woken up several times during the night, partly due to Mr-High-Maintenance-Henry, but also due to the odd nightmare here or there. Since when did she have nightmares? Then again... her dreams were about evil doctors doing awful things to her... her or her <em>and<em> her baby. But... most of them ended pretty pleasantly now that she thought of it. She was startled suddenly to realize how much Lincoln had been there to save her in her dreams... where it once had been Frank. But then, how many times had he been there to save her in real life? A lot... she could have died so many times if it weren't for him. Maybe her dreams were just reflecting that?

Olivia's thoughts were interrupted. "Ms Dunham? Good morning! How are we feeling today?" Olivia's nurse, Janet, asked kindly. The middle-aged woman smiled warmly at her charge and walked over, curiously peeking over at the snoozing babe in the young woman's arms. "How's the little one?" Normally they would have discharged a new mother if she was feeling up to it the next day, but with how unnatural her situation was, they wanted to keep her over-night to monitor her, make sure there were no complications.

"Good morning, I'm doing just fine and so is Henry," Olivia explained, smiling down again at her little boy, her miracle.

"Aww, what a nice name. Oh, looks like he knows we're talking about him!" The nurse laughed as Henry stirred and began to fuss. "Do you still need help?" she asked. Janet had been graciously assisting Olivia with feeding Henry and teaching her a few things about motherhood from her own experience. She was very grateful for her.

"No, I think I got it," Olivia said, accepting the small feeding blanket from the older woman. Just as the baby settled down and began to feed, there was a knock on the door. Again, before anyone could answer, it opened a crack... but this time, two heads popped into view. Charlie and Lincoln took one look at their partner, blushed, and pulled right back out. Olivia laughed at the sight and called them in, promising they weren't going to see anything and that it was no problem.

"How are you doing, 'Liv?" Charlie asked in an almost brotherly concern.

"Oh I'm just peachy, right as rain," Olivia answered with a wide smile. She _did _look better that morning.

"I'll check on you again later sweetie," Janet said and winked at the two men. "I'll leave these two strapping men with you," she grinned before leaving. Lincoln and Charlie blinked at the comment, unsure what to make of it, which just made Olivia laugh at their expense once again.

"Glad you're doing better, 'Liv," Lincoln smiled at her. He truly felt relief, hating having to see Olivia so weary, so anxious, it made him want to grab her and never let her go. There he went again, being all sappy. Even though his thoughts were relatively serious, his eyes twinkled with mischief. Olivia studied him and wondered what was on his mind. She had seen that look from him many times. Then again, Charlie didn't look much better... what was up? Before she could question them though, it seemed little Henry had had enough and was not sitting on her lap looking up at her.

"Well mister, I guess you've had enough, hm?" Olivia spoke to Henry, who gazed up at her with big wide blue eyes. Peter's eyes...

"That's one cute kid, 'Liv," Charlie mentioned, thankfully stopping Olivia from treading down a gloomy path in her mind.

"He is, isn't he?" Olivia agreed with a wide smile, returning to the here and now. Charlie and Lincoln were both used to Olivia's normally chirpy self but she almost seemed to radiate happiness in waves now. A stark opposite of what she had been only yesterday. It gave her two best friends much relief that she was back to normal. Or as back to normal as she could be under the circumstances. "So tell me, why do you both look so suspicious?" she asked them out of the blue.

"Us? Suspicious? No... never!" Lincoln countered in mock-offense, placing a fist over his heart dramatically.

"Nope, not us, 'Liv!" Charlie agreed, crossing his arms and giving Olivia his most serious look... which looked fake to begin with.

"Uh huh, spill," Olivia ordered.

"It's not much. You've officially been put on maternity-leave," Lincoln answered. He knew how much Olivia enjoyed her work but knew she'd be feeling conflicted with the birth of her child and all. It was always fun to tease her though.

"For how long?" She asked with a rather defeated look. At least she wasn't going to argue.

"Well... normally it would take some time, but knowing you, you'd probably want to jump right back into work with the baby strapped to a carrier on your back..." Lincoln said playfully.

"Now come on, you know I wouldn't..." Olivia protested but received three incredulous looks.

"Hahaha! Look! The kid agrees with us! Look at his face!" Charlie laughed.

"Aww, see? The squirt's probably gunna be just like us when he gets older!" Lincoln chipped in, grinning cheekily and puffing up pridefully.

"Oh God, I hope not," Olivia said in mock-alarm. Lincoln deflated visibly and there was a round of chuckles.

"So yeah, if by two weeks time you're all settled and have someone that can watch him, you'll be allowed back to work... _part-time_." Lincoln answered a bit more seriously.

"Part-time?" The new mother questioned, her voice tinged with a tiny bit of exasperation.

"Yes, I – _we_ don't want you to over-work yourself and not get enough sleep. It could make you sick," Lincoln explained. He hoped to God neither of them caught his little slip-up. Fortunately, it didn't seem like Olivia did. If she did, she gave no indication that she did. _Un_fortunately, it seemed like Charlie _did -_ if that smug smirk he was throwing at him was any clue. Lincoln lifted a hand to quiet the two down as his communicator chimed. "This is Agent Lee," he spoke.

"_Good morning Sir, there has been a Fringe Event," _Astrid spoke.

"Alright, we'll be right there," Lincoln answered. "Well, we've gotta go now," Lincoln informed them.

"Yeah, we have mission to go to," Charlie chimed in with a smug smile.

"Oh, rub it in why don'tcha?" Olivia huffed.

"Sorry kiddo," Charlie chuckled.

"No you're not," Olivia smiled back.

"We'll come visit again, okay?" Lincoln promised.

"Well, I get discharged later today so stop by my apartment after work and tell me how the mission went, okay?" Olivia offered. The men agreed and with another goodbye to baby Henry, they left.

On their way down the hall, Charlie couldn't help himself from bullying his friend. "So... _you _don't want her to get over-worked and not get enough rest, huh?" Charlie questioned teasingly. "Hmm, that's odd... I would have thought it was the department that felt that..."

"It _is _the department that thinks that," Lincoln threw back.

"Right right..." Charlie agreed offhandedly, "_and _you," he added with a grin.

"Well... of course I also don't want her to get overwhelmed..." Lincoln bristled slightly.

"Ah just admit you have a thing for her and get it over-with," Charlie sighed. Honestly, why couldn't Lincoln just be man enough to admit it?

"You're being an unusual pest today..." Lincoln said, refusing to tell Charlie anything.

"Oh, ouch, defensive are we? Sounds like denial to me..." Thankfully, both men had their own cars so Lincoln was able to take a breather, however, Charlie picked it up as soon as they began to walk toward the main Fringe Division building. "You know the first step to denial is talking about it right? You have a problem..."

"Charlie, I love you like a brother but if you don't shut up about absurd things like this, I might have to have you taken away!" He _tried _to look serious, he really did.

"See! There you go again! So defensive!" Charlie threw his hands up. At least the topic wasn't his little room-mates bunking in his veins... not worms, mind you.

"Sirs? Am I interrupting?" Astrid asked as she walked up to her commanding officer.

Charlie calmly turned to her. "Yes you-" but he couldn't finish.

"NO you're not! Have a Fringe event for us? Fire away!" Lincoln cut Charlie off, enthusiastically taking the gracious opportunity to change the subject.

"Pfft, denial..." Charlie muttered to himself. He was promptly ignored.

"Oh-kay. There is a Fringe Event, yes..." Astrid affirmed, blinking in confusion at the odd display.

"So? What is it?" Charlie gave in, dropping the subject about the lack of romance between his two friends _temporarily_.

"There are reports of a large animal attacking people in a small town in Utah and..." she paused, uncertain about this latest bit of information, "_melting cars," _the dedicated Agent explained.

"Melting cars you say? You don't hear that everyday, sounds interesting," Lincoln nodded.

"So long as it isn't bugs..."

"Aw come now, I bet you can't wait for another mission that has bugs in it," Lincoln smiled cheekily. It was Lincoln's turn to bully him. Charlie gave him a sour look.

"We found reports that a Dr. Abe Franklin had been experimenting on animals in the a research lab on the outskirts of the town before he was discovered doing illegal tests and fired," Astrid went on.

"Abe?" Charlie grinned, "Abe, huh? What about that, huh Lincoln?"

Lincoln ignored him. "Experiments?" What was with Charlie today? Olivia is temporarily out of commission so he decides to dump all his taunting on his boss? Maybe it was pay-back for how many times he and Olivia made fun of him concerning his _worms_... sorry, _Arachnids_.

"Yes Sir, according to sources, he was trying to create the perfect pet," she told them.

"Is he still living there?" Lincoln rolled his eyes at a still grinning Charlie.

"Yes Sir, he has a small house on the edge of town,"

"Alright, we'll look into it, thank you Agent,"

"Sirs," Astrid nodded and walked back to her station.

As the two men walked toward the garage, Charlie rubbed his hands together. "Alright Lincoln, let's go see Abe..." he said with a snicker.

Lincoln gave his friend a half-serious mock-annoyed look. "Man, shut up already, don't sass your boss," he said, though his tone was light-hearted.

"Yes _Sir!_" Charlie mock-saluted him.

"Now that I _know _is insubordination..." the new Chief of Fringe Division scoffed as they got into the car. They wouldn't need a squad just yet since right now they were going to investigate reports and talk to Dr. Franklin. Lincoln hoped Charlie or Olivia wouldn't notice how concerned Lincoln felt about everything that was going on lately. While he and Charlie were both troubled by recent news and had more questions than answers, it was nice to fall back to their old ways. Soon, though, those issues would have to be addressed...

_TBC_...

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><p><strong>End AN**: I seriously love the interactions between Fauxlivia, Scarlie and Alt!Lincoln :D it is made of awesome. Also, why doesn't anyone like "our" Lincoln? He just needs to get exposed a little more to the world of Fringe and relax a little, maybe stay up a few nights in a row and let his beard grow out a little. After all, he _is still _Lincoln :D he just has that sexy smarty-pants way to him right now... XD "Why yes Agent Lee, you can handcuff and _search_ me any day :D" LOL j/k.

Shout-Outs:

**ClaraBella1988**: Thanks! I've been wanting something like my story too so I understand your feelings :P hopefully others will follow in my footsteps lol. Glad you enjoyed it!

**AnneRG**: Thank you! Don't worry, I won't abandon it XD it could be better grammatically but it was three in the morning when I wrote it so... yeah, thanks lol.

**UPDATE**: Lol I like your name XD. Thanks! I doubt Peter will go to Fauxlivia, they just need to get William Bell outta "our" Olivia XD that's what the season finale is about, in a little under two weeks D: I'm not sure what'll happen but I hope Lincoln and Fauxlivia find a way to each other too!


	3. Chapter 3

**Substitute**

**A/N**: Finally, a bit of action here :D if only to cut into the thick emotional girly-romance thing... lol. Also plenty of Charlie and Lincoln interaction in this chapter. I just love how brotherly those two act XD. I hope you enjoy!

Again, don't expect every chapter to be updated this ridiculously fast... I'm on a roll!

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><p>The two agents had taken an Airship to Utah and then rented a car. While Charlie used this opportunity to inject himself with his arachnid treatment, the two rode in silence. Soon though, something began to bother Lincoln. Perhaps the silence wasn't such a good thing. Silence brought over thoughts and memories... mostly of Olivia and Henry. This would not do. "What is it with you and gum? Do you smoke?" Lincoln asked out of the blue. He had to get his mind off of Olivia somehow... hopefully Charlie wouldn't pick up on this.<p>

"Nah, I like it," Charlie shrugged, continuing to smack his gum away.

"Well that's driving me nuts," the younger man admitted. The sound normally _was _annoying, but it usually didn't bother him. Right now though it was the only thing he could think of to talk about.

"It's never bothered you before?" Charlie reminded him.

"Well maybe I'm extra sensitive to annoying noises today... like your voice," Lincoln smiled smugly at his little joke.

"Oh, ouch..." Charlie chuckled. "So are we there yet?" Charlie asked after another long pause.

"Almost, Agent Farnsworth said the town was around here some-ah, there it is!" Lincoln said after they drove past a collection of high rocks and mountainous terrain. They rolled down into town and slowed down near a local cop munching on a hotdog. "Hello officer," Lincoln pulled out his show-me. "I am agent Lee from Fringe Division and this is my partner agent Francis, we'd like to ask you a few questions if that's okay with you?" he asked politely.

"Sure thing, what can I help you with, agent?" The thin cop asked.

"We're on a case, we heard reports of a large animal terrorizing the locals?"

"Yeah! Yes, we were expecting you boys to show up actually... there've been some nasty things going on here lately. They say that animal can melt things, even metal, with a bite! The clinic's got its hands full with new patience suffering all kinds of nasty burns... that thing isn't natural..." the cop said, scratching his receding hairline and frowning grimly.

"We understand that it all started when a Dr. Abe Franklin was fired from his job? Do you know where we might find him? We'd like to speak with him," Charlie asked, squinting a little from the direct sunlight in his eyes.

"Sure, he lives on the edge of town. Just head down this street and take one left and a right on Clover Dr., then just keep going for a few miles until you reach an old gas-station... his house is just beyond that, before the apartments, it's the only house sitting near the road for a while, you can't miss it," the cop said. "We've already been to ask him questions but he's pretty tight lipped about it... maybe he'll respond better to you guys," he shrugged.

"Thank you for your assistance, officer," Lincoln said.

"No problem, good luck boys," the cop nodded and turned back to his hotdog. It didn't take too long for them to reach the house. They walked up to the door and knocked. When the door opened to an aging man with a thin white beard, they relaxed a little, relieved that he was still here and hadn't skipped town.

"Afternoon, we're-" the man took one look at their show-mes and turned sharply, sprinting toward the back door. "Damnit..." Lincoln muttered and took off after him. "STOP!" he ordered and literally pounced, forcibly stopping the man from escaping.

Charlie ran over, pulling handcuffs from his pocket and cuffing the man. "Running only gives us reason to think you're guilty of something," he told him.

"Let me go! I had nothing to do with any of this!" Franklin said.

"Any of what? You didn't even let us introduce ourselves!" Charlie growled. The man was still struggling to get loose. Lincoln had just about enough and whipped out his gun, pressing it against the man's head.

"Do. Not. Move," Lincoln snapped, towering over the man. Franklin whimpered in fear, at the feel of the cold metal, and immediately stilled. Lincoln went on to ask the man questions about the reports of the large beast and ties to him and his illegal experiments. They were surprised when the doctor broke down and admitted it was all his fault and apologized for lying but he didn't want to go to prison.

"It's a little late for that, pal," Charlie said gruffly.

"Tell us what you know and how to contain it," Lincoln ordered. And so, Franklin explained, he told them how his old dog died, how it was very smart and loyal, how he just wanted to recreate that in his new dog, his _own _dog, not any other animal...

"I shouldn't have been fired! They had no right! This was _my _dog!" Franklin growled.

"It's illegal no matter who's dog it is, besides, you were using government equipment for an unsanctioned project. Now your _pet _has gotten loose and is melting cars and eating people!" Lincoln countered, glaring at the irresponsible fool before him. "Charlie, get some back up in here to watch this guy," Lincoln ordered, then turned back to Franklin. "Tell us what we need to know, tell us how to contain it so it stops hurting people," he said.

"Fine... just... just don't hurt him, okay? He doesn't know any better," Franklin agreed.

"If it comes to it, we'll do what we have to do, I can't make any promises," Lincoln warned him. Franklin slumped in defeat but told him anyway. Apparently he had crafted a special cage for his pet, but things had gotten out of hand and his 'dog' escaped.

"Sir? How can we assist?" Two cops walked over to where Lincoln still sat listening to Franklin's instructions on how to get the dog in the cage... which were pretty vague.

"Thank you for assisting. Just watch him while we clean up his mess," Lincoln instructed. The cops nodded and stood by. Lincoln and Charlie went to the basement to retrieve the cage, disheartened by how big and heavy it was. They struggled a little but finally managed to get the cage up the stairs, through the door, and outside.

"I don't think the cage'll fit in the car..." Charlie muttered. Lincoln pinched the bridge of his nose and nodded in agreement. Before they could carry on with their mission, they had to exchange their car. It took half an hour to get everything straightened but finally they managed to rent a truck, haul the cage onto it, and drive back into town. Asking around they discovered that the dog seemed to come from and retreat into the woods outside of town, some speculated that it was staying in an old coal mine shaft near the entrance.

"Man, this is crazy..." Lincoln muttered.

"Crazier than another universe? Crazier than Olivia being pregnant and now having a kid? Crazier than your _crazy_ _denial_ over your obvious feelings for her?" Charlie chimed in.

"Alright, I get it, enough" Lincoln sighed. He wouldn't let that drop, would he? He wasn't really in the mood to joke around right now, even though Charlie was mostly being serious.

"You haven't slept much lately, have you?" Charlie observed. Lincoln could usually take a jab at him, lately though he had been a little snappy. Lincoln with no sleep is a cranky Lincoln. He should have noticed this earlier, when they were at Olivia's. He's left cheek, right at the jaw line, twitched like crazy when he was upset... and even though he was being a clown, he was still a bit twitchy.

"No, I haven't," Lincoln admitted. It was enough that he was now in charge, but he had so much more to deal with now... another universe, more frequent fringe events, Olivia, Broyles' disappearance, conspiracies, etcetera. There was just so much churning in his head day and night that sleeping really wasn't his forte at the moment. The rest of the trip was in gloomy silence, both men lost in their own thoughts. When had the world become so dark?

When they got to the spot most people said they'd seen the beast run off to, they got out of the car, pulled out their weapons, and cautiously made their way into the dark, dank entrance of the mine. "Man, this sucks..."

"I bet there are some nice friendly spiders in there for your 'arachnids' to play with..." Lincoln whispered, trying to cheer himself up a little. The disgruntled look from his partner _did _make him feel better.

"Oh look, torches! Got any matches?" Charlie joked, scoffing slightly.

"I don't smoke..." Lincoln answered absently with a frown. He knew Charlie was joking, but maybe... "Wait, I've got an idea... lemme see the flashlight," Lincoln said, taking the offered device and pulling it apart. There was enough light streaming in from the outside to be able to work.

"You're serious? What are you doing? We need that light..." Charlie reminded him.

"I know, genius, but it's running out of batteries anyway and we can use this torch to light up the other ones."

"Why doesn't this place have any electricity?" Charlie grumbled.

"It's probably a _really _old mine that dried up decades ago," Lincoln shrugged. "There we go!" he said as the torch sparked into a flame.

"What did you do?" Charlie asked curiously, surprised.

"Your small mind probably won't understand it if I tried to explain it," Lincoln smiled smugly.

"Hey! I'm plenty smart! I just don't like to show it, I'm not a nerd like you, _Sir,_" Charlie smirked. The two were walking further into the mine, torch in hand and lighting the other torches as they went.

"Yeah well- wait, what's that sound?" Lincoln whispered and the men stopped. They turned to their right and noticed for the first time that the mine shaft wasn't just a shaft, that it had many little veins of tunnels that went out of the main one. Charlie dipped the torch forward and they gaped at the sight they saw. Not too far down the tunnel was an enormous black form curled up into a ball.

"Oh, damn... that is one big dog..." Charlie muttered.

"That's a dog? It looks more like a bull or some other huge animal..." Lincoln instinctively tightened his hold on his gun when said huge animal twitched in his slumber. "You think Franklin was pulling our leg? I don't think that cage will hold it..."

"Sure it will!" Charlie said optimistically.

"Oh yeah? Well fine, how do we get it in it then?"

"Maybe we can just coerce it to get into the cage?" Charlie suggested with a raised eyebrow.

"Coerce it... really?" Lincoln gave his older friend an incredulous look. Suddenly, the dog must have smelled them and stood on its feet faster than they thought an animal that big could move.

"Crap" both men uttered. The dog got to its feet when it sensed their presence and growled menacinly.

"Good doggy, come to uncle Charlie and let us take you back to your master, okay?" Charlie said, leaning over to pat his leg.

"Are you serious?" Lincoln balked. Had all these crazy missions finally gone to his friend's head? The dog growled louder and took a step forward, its drool making the ground beneath it's gigantic maw sizzle as it landed. And then... it took off, running, right toward Lincoln. "SHIT!" Lincoln turned and sped off, the dog right at his heals. Charlie spat his gum and shot a wildshot where the dog had been but it was quicker than he thought. He groaned in annoyance and took off after them.

When they reached the open area outside, Lincoln began running in circles, dodging the dog but not fast enough to escape getting scraped now and again. "SHOOT IT!" Lincoln screamed at his partner frantically. He could almost _feel _the acidic breath of the demon dog on his neck as it barreled toward him.

"Damnit Lincoln, stay still, I can't get a good shot with you running around like that!" Charlie called out, following the dog with his pistol. Maybe it wasn't the best time to mess around with his head but he couldn't help it.

"STAY STILL?" The younger man cried exasperatedly, flinching away from the dog as it snapped its enormous jaws at him.

"Almost got a clear shot, stay still for just a second," Charlie advised. Lincoln groaned but reluctantly did as he was asked. He trusted in Charlie's dead-eye accuracy with a pistol. It was no where near as good as Olivia's, who's aim was almost legendary, but he trusted his aim well enough to stay still. Fortunately, Charlie was able to hit his target this time, unfortunately, it wasn't in time to stop the dog from clawing Lincoln's shoulder deeply, knocking him over in the process. Charlie shot the dog six more times in the side until it wheezed and fell over. Lincoln had to roll out of the way before he was crushed. "You okay?" Charlie asked in concern, helping his commanding officer up.

"Oh I'm just fine! This gaping wound? It's just a scratch!" Lincoln said with a grimace.

"Come on, let's get this mission over with and I'll buy you a beer, okay?" Charlie offered, feeling guilty for letting his friend get hurt.

"Yeah, okay..." Lincoln said distractedly, wincing in pain. The men strained under the animal's enormous weight but finally managed to haul it into the truck. As Charlie drove, Lincoln tore his shirt and pressed the cloth over his wound to stop the bleeding until they could get to a medical facility. They dropped the dog off at Franklin's house, explaining what had happened and that they had to put the dog down. The 'good doctor' moarned for the death of his dog while the police took him away. Thankfully, one of the cops that had arrived a while after they left the first time, the cop they met on the street, offered to clean up the mess for them.

The men drove over to the local clinic to get Lincoln patched up. Fortunately, the small medical facility had everything necessary to disinfect and seal Lincoln's wound so they would be able to leave immediately. The men had to wait an hour for the next Airship to take them home but in no time they were driving back to Fringe HQ. "I bet this would have gone faster if 'Liv was with us..." Charlie smiled.

"Yeah, all she would have had to do was growl back at the dog to make it submit," Lincoln laughed.

"That girl can growl at anyone and make them submit," Charlie added. The men laughed. It wasn't exactly far from the truth. Olivia was known among the force to be one tough bitch, though she was never unfriendly and generally got along with everyone. "See you at 'Liv's later?" Charlie asked.

"Yeah, sure," Lincoln agreed. Being boss also meant having to write long boring reports after every mission... including ones you're on unfortunately. Sometimes he wished he hadn't been such a pain to his former Chief. An hour later, Lincoln was dismayed to discover that he had left the lights of his car on the whole day... and so, the almighty boss of Fringe Division had to lower himself to those under his greatness and take the bus like a normal person. Lincoln snorted at the cheesy thought-line. He didn't really think of himself that way, he just imagined that was what something Olivia would say and smiled.

When Lincoln reached Olivia's door it opened before he had a chance to knock, his fist still hovering where he would have. "Wow, you look like crap," was the first thing Olivia said, her brows furrowing in concern.

"Thanks," Lincoln smiled and walked in as Olivia stepped away.

"What took you so long, buddy?" Charlie asked from the couch, Henry sitting on his lap and looking around.

"Oh, you know, _boss _stuff..." Lincoln shrugged.

"You never miss a chance to remind us, do you?" Olivia grinned.

"Never! If I don't remind you, you'll forget and trample all over me!" He retorted.

"Aww, we do that anyway though, you love it," Olivia teased, handing him a cup of "coffee" and an aspirin.

"Thanks, this is just what I need," Lincoln said, accepting the offered items greedily. The three sat and talked, the men explaining everything they went through and wishing they had here there with them to make it easier.

"You boys are lost without me, huh?" Olivia grinned.

"You have no idea, 'Liv," Charlie laughed. While they spoke, Henry was passed around and one thing they noticed right away was how taken the boy was with Lincoln. All Lincoln had to do was smile at the baby and it was laughing and bouncing happily on his lap.

"The kid likes you," Charlie observed.

"He likes you too," Lincoln countered.

"Maybe, but not as much as he likes you..." Olivia mentioned. It was almost as if the baby had already chosen who he wanted as a father... but how could that be? Olivia brushed that thought away and continued to watch her son laugh and gurgle up at Lincoln, who was making goofy faces at him. It was so cute and endearing that it _almost _made Olivia sick. So much mushy stuff...

"Hey, I'm gunna go, I'm beat! Thanks for the "coffee" 'Liv, I'll see you later," Charlie said, giving Olivia a quick brotherly one-armed hug before heading off.

"I should probably go too," Lincoln said, feeling the tension creep into the room with Charlie gone. He handed Henry over to Olivia and began to get up.

"Lincoln?" Olivia said, standing with him and walking up to him. Lincoln turned and looked at her curiously but she said nothing, just stared into his eyes. It was only when he felt her breath on his lips that he pulled away and began to walk off. Olivia blinked back into reality and watched him. Were they just about to kiss? The thought didn't bother her like she thought it would... on the contrary. "Lincoln... wait..." Olivia protested, feeling like she was once again pushing him away. Why was it like this? She missed her friend.

"I'll see you later, 'Liv... say goodnight to Henry for me," he said quietly.

"At least let me give you a lift?" Olivia offered. She hated this. Why were things so weird between them? Oh, right, because he was in love with her and she was too much of a damn fool to let him in.

"Nah, that's okay, I'll take the bus, you don't have to worry so much, see you later," Lincoln countered, smiling awkwardly before turning and heading out. Olivia watched him leave and then was compelled to walk over to her window and continue to watch him, a part of her telling her that it was only to see that he got to the bus-stop safely. The other part? That part she ignored... though it was getting harder to lately.

"I'm sorry Lincoln," Olivia muttered, her heart clenching.

_TBC_...

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><p><strong>End AN**: Yeah, okay so it didn't cut too deep, did it? I mean the action part, not the dog on poor Lincoln... poor guy, why does everything bad always happen to him? XD Then again, poor Charlie and his "worms" too huh? Arachnids!

Shout-Outs:

**zeusfluff**: I'm glad you like it!

**AnneRG**: Thanks, Lincoln is awesome in any universe XD

**katiekayx**: Omg I do too lol wow I really hope they get together XD

**Jill Cohen**: I totally cried during that scene, it was so awesome!


	4. Chapter 4

**Substitute**

**A/N**: All this "romantic" drama is starting to make it read like a soap opera me thinks... I'm sorry about that! Haha, well maybe not. XD

I probably shouldn't be updating these so soon... I don't have each chapter complete except these first few so when I run out of already completed chapters to post, it might take me a while to update, you know? Oh well... I still hope you all enjoy XD

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><p>Charlie sat at his desk at work, bored out of his mind that next morning. Where was a Fringe Event when you really needed one? He glanced around noticing that he wasn't the only bored one there. He only wished Olivia were here to keep him from going crazy from boredom. They usually talked and joked around at times like this. He continued to survey the command room and noticed it was <em>too <em>quiet... where was Lincoln? He was usually up and about flirting with the other women – though not so much any more, not when he had a one-track mind for someone else – or joking with someone... he was usually quiet today. 'Guess I have something to do after all!' Charlie hopped off his chair and walked up the steps to the Chief's office. He found Lincoln hard at work, which was _really _that unusual. There was a reason why Lincoln was the one that got promoted and not him after all. "Knock, knock," Charlie said, making his presence known.

"Hm?" Lincoln acknowledged, never taking his eyes off his monitor.

"What's up? You're quiet," Charlie mentioned, walking over to plop himself on the chair in front of Lincoln's desk, making himself comfortable. He was allowed, his own paper work was finished. Perks of being a field-agent with less work and not the Chief AND a field agent.

"So? I'm working, I'm allowed to be quiet," Lincoln said with a raised an eyebrow, though he still didn't look up. His fingers skimmed across the keys in a way that made Charlie think he was trying to fuse with it. Something was definitely up... Lincoln normally hated paper-work! Maybe he just needed some distraction? Olivia, or a subject surrounding her, always seemed to get his attention.

"So... about 'Liv..." Charlie began. This time, Lincoln _did _glance up. Bingo. Was that really all it took to get his attention? Charlie found this amusing. Why'd his friend have to be so hard-headed?

"What about her?" The younger man asked cautiously. Lincoln was walking into this one, he knew it.

"You and 'Liv spent quiet a while alone last night..." Charlie trailed off. Lincoln leaned back and stared at his friend. They had spent a span of three minutes alone before Lincoln _ran away_... well okay, maybe not ran, but that's how he felt lately. He knew that Charlie was just trying to distract him, trying to bring him out of his grim thoughts and he was thankful for that.

"Charlie..." Lincoln paused. The seriousness in his friend's tone made the older man sober up.

"What is it?" He asked on alert, sitting a little straighter. "I was just playing, you know I-"

"I know, I know... look, I was thinking about what we spoke about the other day, when the Secretary went to visit Olivia," Lincoln admitted, leaning back in his seat.

"Yeah?" Charlie prompted.

"Why 'Liv? You know? Why was she chosen for that... that mission?" he scratched his rough jaw in thought. He had once thought of the other Olivia as an imposter, but was it right to label her as such? After all, the woman was brain-washed into thinking she was someone else, wasn't she? He had no right to be angry at her. He should be more angry at _their_ Olivia for not telling them... _and_ angry at her for not telling him about the baby, but he found he couldn't be angry at her either.

"Maybe it has something to do with the Secretary's son?" Charlie suggested. Peter Bishop, what was so special about him? What was so special about Henry? What did those people want so badly?

'Peter Bishop... Henry's dad...' Lincoln thought a little resentfully. "Yeah, maybe, I dunno... 'Liv hasn't talked about it," he agreed, rubbing the tick in his face. 'Or him...' he added in his head. "In fact, we haven't really spoken much at all..." he admitted. He was thankful that Charlie didn't say anything related to that, knowing how hard it was for him not to. He leaned in closer, giving Charlie and conspiratorial look. "I think the Secretary is hiding something... something to do with those three, not just the other universe" he said.

"You mean 'Liv, Peter Bishop and their kid?" Charlie questioned with his own raised eyebrow. So finally he believed him that something was seriously off about all of this?

"Yeah," Lincoln nodded. He resisted frowning at the mention of Henry being related to anyone else, after all, who was he to feel this way? He was just a guy that was there at the right time... it wasn't like he had helped conceive the kid, though that thought had him resisting smiling.

"You believe me now? You said I was crazy," Charlie reminded him.

"You're not crazy, this whole damn situation is crazy," Lincoln scoffed and leaned back again, letting his head fall back against the chair and groaned in frustration. "I don't know... maybe we're just being paranoid? The man has never given anyone any idea that he's suspicious of something or plotting something. He's a good man, right? He can't be _that _sneaky, right?" he rubbed his face, too tired to think about all this.

"You have too much faith in people, buddy," Charlie sighed.

Meanwhile, Olivia was sitting with her mom, sipping on hot liquid that tasted a little like coffee but wasn't exactly. "He's so beautiful," Marilyn gushed, smiling at her grandson as the infant wobbled it's little limbs in the air where he lay near them.

"Yeah, he's a cute kid," Olivia agreed. 'And he's all mine,' she smiled.

"So tell me, how is life treating you so far? Are you okay?" Not _this_ again.

"I'm fine mom," Olivia sighed, getting a little tired of people asking her this. She had gotten shot, stabbed, electrocuted, been swapped with an alternate version of herself, and people thought she wasn't capable of handling herself with a child? Seriously? "Life is going pretty well actually," she shrugged. She didn't think about Frank as much anymore, things had quieted down a bit all around and she had the support of her mother and best friends... why wouldn't life be good right now?

"I'm so happy to hear that sweetie," Marilyn smiled. "So tell me, any chance of you getting a father for your son?" she asked bluntly.

"Mom!" Olivia groaned, she did _not _want to talk about this!

"I'm just worried that the baby won't have a father while growing up!" She said a little defensively. "It's very important for a child, you know," she reminded her.

"I know, mom, I know... I just don't have time right now for that sort of thing, okay? After Frank _left me_, I haven't been thinking... really..." Olivia explained. It wasn't a complete lie, she really didn't have time to think about that sort of thing with how fast her life was moving right now. She thought about Frank before, but he was clearly out of the picture, as was the baby's biological father... so who did that leave? What other men did she really spend her time with? Charlie? Hell no. Lincoln? Well...

"What about that agent Lee? You spoke of him once. I think I met him, now that I recall. He's certainly attractive, much better looking than Frank in my opinion, and seemed like he had a good head on him too, smart men make good lovers," Marilyn winked. "Oh, I'm sorry, I hope that doesn't bother you, talking about Frank like that I mean," her mother apologized. What? Did her mother have telepathic abilities now? Who knows, with the weird crap going around, she might as well!

"No way mom, Lincoln... _Captain Lee _is my boss. He's... like a brother to me..." The boss part was true but obviously, even to her, an excuse. She'd be lying if she didn't find that to be at least a little bit thrilling, she always kind of had, he just had that way about him. The idea of stumbling into his office, their hands on each other, falling over onto his desk, over his papers, ripping their clothes off, when anyone could just walk in and catch them in the heat of the moment was... wait, what in the _hell_ was she thinking about?

Olivia shook the _unfortunately pleasant_ images out of her head, shuddering and growled at herself inwardly in exasperation. What was wrong with her? Three little words and her life was thrown further off the scale than having the baby would have... damn him. Again, why was it _now _that she thought this way about him? And then, of course, the 'like a brother' part was a straight-up lie. Period. Olivia mentally kicked herself for letting that other part of herself sneak up to her and make her admit that to herself.

"Nonsense! I don't believe that for a second," Marilyn brushed off, obviously picking up on her daughter's mental-waves again and patted her leg. "But I can tell you don't really want to talk about him right now, for whatever reason, so I'll drop it. I just hope you'll open up to me some time and tell me,"

"I will mom..." Olivia reluctantly promised.

"Honey, let me just one thing," Marilyn began, ignoring the groan of frustration from her daughter and how she let her head slip off her palm where it had been resting and onto the table. Really, that girl could be so dramatic sometimes. "I just want you to do what _you _want, okay? Follow your feelings, don't be afraid to, just because you can get hurt, doesn't mean you can't also get healed, okay?" Olivia's mother suggested. She was, of course, referring to not only Frank, but her father as well.

"I know, mom, thank you," Olivia looked up and smiled sincerely.

Back at Fringe HQ, the day had ended unnervingly quietly and the people shuffled from their desks, clocking out and heading home. Lincoln sat at his desk and, not for the first time, thought about what he had admitted to Olivia that night. She was going to die, she had to be told... but maybe it was a bad idea? He had a feeling she wouldn't have died... she _couldn't _have died! But then, it was probably his inability to let even the idea of her dying enter his mind that was telling him that, not reality itself per se. What now though? Things were so tense between them it was like the room they occupied when they were alone together was full of some thick substance that wouldn't let them breathe and had them sluggish and confused. It was frustrating as hell.

And it was all his fault.

Lincoln looked over at the public showers and decided against it. While he would normally shower here before heading home, normally after a mission that had him sweaty anyway, he decided against it this time and to just go home. Lincoln stumbled into his apartment, tired. How can such an uneventful day leave him feeling so exhausted?

Lincoln lay in bed, without his shower, having been too tired to do so, physically and, he admitted it, emotionally too. Maybe the emotional part left him so drained. He could be man enough to admit it when he was being emotional. 'What? Am _I _pregnant now?' he thought with an amused snort. He didn't usually let his emotions get carried away like this so he almost felt girly, but he couldn't help it at the moment... maybe it was the fatigue or the reality of his position finally catching up to him.

Maybe a combination of both?

Lincoln grunted in agitation, especially considering he couldn't even fall asleep this night either, like most night. Finally, mercifully, after a few hours of his mind tormenting him with burdens he didn't want to lay on anyone else, even if it seemed it was for naught lately, he fell into fitful, restless sleep, dreaming of the other universes, the future, Olivia, and Henry.

_TBC_...

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><p><strong>End AN**: Poor Lincoln... and Olivia! She's such a mess... yes yes I know it's all terribly exaggerated but whatever, some of you like it like that, admit it. Admit it! Sorry that there wasn't much in this chapter, I'm trying to ease my way into the heavier stuff, ya know? Whatever that "heavier" stuff may be lol.

Shout-Outs: 

**Jill Cohen**: Hahaha, he didn't get bitten, if he had, his arm would've fallen off due to the acid D: don't worry, I don't plan for them to stay like this through the whole story lol, that'd suck and I'm too sappy-hearted to do that. No, I think I read an interview somewhere with Seth Gabel (Lincoln) that there would be a bit more interaction between his character and Anna's :D I'm uber excited!

**AnneRG**: Cranky Lincoln has many sides to him, he can be all intense and sexy, and just grumpy and adorable XD. I love Charlie and Lincoln as buddies :D they're like brothers in my opinion. Yes, the awkwardness is... awkward... lol.

**katiekayx**: I was worried for Lincoln too D: I plan for there to be a bit more Lincoln/Henry interaction later :P I think he'd be awesome with kids!

**zeusfluff**: Me too! XD


	5. Chapter 5

**Substitute**

**A/N**: Some secrets are revealed! Seriously, is it just me, or does my story seem more like a teenage drama than anything else? Thank God the serious stuff is coming up soon... OMG OOPS! I really shouldn't have said that! Haha, oh dear, silly me. Just to let you know, I'm going to refer to Walternate as Bishop. Enjoy!

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><p>It had been a few days. Where Olivia had once been bothered by not going to work for two weeks, as little as that really way, the more time she spent with her son, the more she began to realize how important her time with him was. She loved her son more than life itself, she didn't know that would ever be possible for her in the past. It wasn't like she had been against having a child, it was just something that felt too crazy at the time. The world sucked, period, and she didn't like the idea of bringing in a child to it. Now, though, she couldn't think of life without her beloved son.<p>

Still, even though she loved spending time with Henry, had her mom came to visit and smother her baby with grandma-love and she got a few calls from her other friends who had been out of town, she felt rather lonely. She took up exercising and working on old reports, but it didn't help much. Who knew she would turn into such a... female? She laughed inwardly at the absurdity of it. Had she really been that cold and emotionless before? What changed? Did it have something to do with what she had done? Was it catching up to her now? Did it have something to do with Frank leaving her? Or Lincoln's unwavering loyalty to her? She had an idea that maybe it had something to do with a combination of all of that.

While Lincoln and Charlie called now and again as well, they had been swamped with work lately so that was as far as their interaction got these days. Olivia sat at her computer that early morning, cursing at the device for failing her. "Piece of junk," Olivia muttered, blinking when the baby, who lay nearby in his little pen – having just recently been fed – giggled. 'My God, he _is_ like Lincoln and Charlie... what's up with that?' she thought, though she smiled affectionately. "Don't laugh, baby-boy, momma needs her stupid computer," Olivia told him, receiving another wide smile. 'He's so damn cute...' she grinned back. "Well... this won't do..." Olivia sighed, staring back at the black screen. She only knew one person smart enough to be able to help her this early in the morning. It was a good thing he was an early riser. She sighed in defeat and grabbed her phone, tapping it until she heard Lincoln's chime.

"_Lee," _his voice said. He sounded distracted, could be why he didn't recognize her ID chime.

"Linc, it's me, is this a bad time?" She asked cautiously. Olivia was aware of Lincoln's melancholy mood lately, even though he clearly tried to hide it, he _had _always been the more serious one, no matter how much of a goof-ball he tried to be. She didn't show her concern for him because she knew he didn't want it, probably some male thing. Olivia thought she understood that though, after all, she didn't like people to pity or smother her with their worry for her either.

"_Hm? Oh, hey. No, it's not, what' up?"_ He asked, all his attention seemingly turned to her in a second.

"You're good with computers right?" She asked curiously, looking over at said piece of crap technology.

_"Sure? Why? You having a problem? Is fixing things the only thing I'm useful for these days?"_ Lincoln asked playfully.

"No... of course not! You have plenty other uses," Olivia played along, smiling.

"_Oh? Like what?"_ His tone held amused curiosity.

"Like being the ass-end of jokes," Olivia grinned and shrugged.

"_Ouch, that hurts you know... so what' up? You want me to come over and look at your computer? Hey, you should be resting, not working..." _He added suddenly, unable to keep his protectiveness toward her from escaping his mouth. These days it felt like his mouth had a mind of it's own.

"Lincoln, I'm not handicapped..." Olivia sighed, feeling slightly agitated. His concern was sweet but a little annoying as well. What was with people thinking she was so fragile? She was still hard-ass-gun-cocking-ready-for-anything Olivia Dunham! Though, maybe lately she wasn't feeling like she was ready for anything... but she was still more or less herself! "Can you come over or not?" she asked.

_"Alright alright I get the hint. 'Course I can, I'll be there in a few,"_ Lincoln said with laughter in his voice.

"Thanks, Lincoln," Olivia sighed in relief. "Oh! And Linc?" She suddenly asked.

"_Yes?" _He asked curiously.

"I know this is probably crazy, asking this of you, but..." she trailed off with uncertainty.

"_What is it 'Liv? Do you need something?"_ He asked, as if in tune with her inner struggles. She felt her heart clench, telling her how amazing this man was to her and that she was an idiot for ignoring him all this time, something it had tried telling her several times before, in the past, but again, she _tried_ to ignore it. It was certainly easier in the past. Not anymore.

"Uh... well, could you stop by the grocery store and pick up some croissants?" She asked quietly unsure about her request, but she suddenly had such a strong craving that she couldn't ignore it. Apparently her body was so out of whack that since it didn't have time to be hormonally imbalanced before, it took vengeance on her and was so now. Thankfully though, the doctors told her it wouldn't last too long. Olivia smiled when she heard him laugh light-heartedly on the other end and agree to her request. She cut the call and looked back over at Henry, who had been observing her. She knew any minutes now, he would need to be changed. "You're just waiting for the right time, aren't you?" she asked him. Henry smiled a big, wide, toothless smile and Olivia had her answer. Who knew babies could be so sneaky? While she waited for Lincoln to get there, she tried in vain to get her computer to respond, occasionally going over to play with Henry a little, maybe trying to wear him out a little.

It wasn't too long before she heard the knock on her door. She took Henry with her and answered the door. "Hey, Linc, thanks for coming," Olivia smiled.

"No problem," her commanding officer smiled back. They stood there for a moment, taking each other in. It wasn't like they hadn't seen each other a few days ago, but somehow it felt like longer. "Um..." Lincoln trailed off, still standing in the doorway. Unfortunately, as much as he would have loved just standing there and watching her, he still had work to do before the afternoon.

"Right, sorry, come in," Olivia blushed in embarrassment, turning so he wouldn't see it and moved out of the way.

"Thanks," Lincoln smiled. "I bring a peace offering!" He declared, lifting a little white package and catching her attention.

"Oh, you are awesome," Olivia grinned, taking the package in her free hand.

"I know I am," Lincoln grinned toothily.

"And so modest too," Olivia laughed softly.

"Of course," Lincoln agreed. The two relaxed, feeling like the tension that had been suffocating them lately had finally died down. It was still there, but no where near quite as much of a bother as it had been. It was a relief to be able to talk to each other the way they had in the past. It seemed they had come to an unspoken agreement not to speak of things that lead to things too emotional. Maybe a bit of time away did them some good in the end. "Here, you wolf those down and I'll take the little guy off your hands," he offered.

"You're not sucking up, are you?" Olivia teased, handing him Henry.

"How is that even possible?" Lincoln asked, lifting the child up and down, making him giggle. "I'm _yow_ boss, I can't suck up to my undowwings, they suck up to me, wight Henwy?" he said in a baby voice, said baby died with giggles, his whole little face lighting up. "See? Henry agrees," Lincoln grinned. Olivia snorted unlady-like in amusement, almost choking on her blessed croissant while she dug into said golden, fluffy, flaky, heavenly-goodness. She watched Lincoln playing with Henry for a moment trying not to think about how _perfect _he looked holding her son. Henry seemed to love him quite a bit, if the cries of glee and his little hands reaching for him were any indication. Lincoln in turn seemed to return the feeling with gusto... which just made her heart beat a little faster.

"You keep telling yourself that _boss_, whatever helps you sleep at night, but you _know _I am the one that calls the shots," Olivia said playfully after finishing, trying to distract herself. Henry laughing and wrapping his little fists around Lincoln's jacket while said man looked down at the child in his arms affectionately was just too much.

"Is that right?" Lincoln turned to look at her, his beautiful green eyes twinkling with amusement as his alluring lips stretched into a familiar triangular smile, his brilliant white teeth flashing at her. Great, those hormones were acting up again, she shouldn't be finding him _this _this attractive! ...It _was _the hormones though, right?

"That's right," Olivia nodded, answering more than one question and brushed the flakes away. Why was she fighting it so strongly though?

"Wow, you were really hungry!" Lincoln blinked. There were three rather large croissants in that box.

"I'm sorry, did you want one?" Olivia's eyes widened a fraction. Had she really just eater all three? Wow, this called for some serious exercising soon!

"Nah, that's okay, I ate already. So? Where's the patient?" he asked curiously, bouncing the baby in his arms absentmindedly, as if it were second-nature to please the child. This kind of thing seemed to come naturally to him... who would have thought?

"I'll take that weird thing hanging off your arms off your hands," she said, grabbing Henry from Lincoln's protective arms. "The 'patient' is in the living room, you remember where it is, right?" she teased.

"What is it with people making fun of me lately?" Lincoln smiled.

"You're just easy to get to, at least Charlie doesn't let it get to him as much," Olivia explained, walking with him to the living room.

"What's that smell?" Lincoln suddenly asked as he sat down near her computer.

"That smell is my cue to let you work and me to pay special attention to this little man," Olivia said, smiling at her son who gave her the most innocent wide-eyed 'it wasn't me!' look.

"Ew..." Lincoln scrunched up his nose. This, of course, made the child giggle.

"Yeah, ew. I'll be back," Olivia laughed as well and went to the other room. She was fortunate to live in such a modest sized apartment that had enough room for her son. It had taken Olivia by surprise how easily she fell into the role of mother. Of course, she had called her mom for help more times than she could count so one day her mom had sat her down and told her what to expect, what not to be worried about, and how to handle certain situations. It helped tremendously. With those little extra know-hows in mind, things became so much easier.

While Lincoln messed with the computer, he listened to Olivia speaking softly to her son. Her tone was soft and loving, just as a mother's should be. It was... endearing. He shook his thoughts away and continued to work. In no time, Olivia had finished changing her son and was relieved to find that he dosed off rather easily now. She smiled down at him one last time, making sure the baby monitor was on, and then went out to check on Lincoln's progress.

Lincoln could feel her eyes on him, studying him, scrutinizing him, he wondered what was on her mind. Her eyes on him was both making him feel giddy like a school-girl and uneasy as hell. Lincoln breathed a silent breath of relief when she looked away and went to stretch. He paused when he heard her curse silently and looked over to see a pained expression on her face. "Something wrong?" he asked in concern.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to distract you," Olivia apologized.

'You've been doing that for a _long _time 'liv...' Lincoln thought, smiling inwardly. "No, it's fine, what's wrong?" he asked again.

"It's nothing much. I'm just sore," she shrugged, wincing with the movement. "I'm fine," she tried to reassure him.

"Liar. Here, let me help you," Lincoln offered, standing to move over to where she was sitting on the couch.

"You don't have to," Olivia said, "I'm fine, really" she protested again, but didn't stop him when he sat next to her and moved her a little so she had her back facing him.

"I told you before that I would take care of you," he whispered, brushing her hair away. His breath on her ear was a little distracting. Olivia closed her eyes, remembering very well when he had told her that. At the time all she could think of was Frank. But now?

"I know..." she whispered back.

"So... why are you sore?" He asked, trying to change the subject from something less emotionally-charged. Weren't they over all of that strangeness between them? Apparently not.

"Henry hasn't been sleeping well lately and in turn, neither have I. To get him to sleep I have to walk around the apartment with him in my arms. He may not weigh that much but after holding him for several hours, several nights in a row, it's been getting to me," she explained, her head lulling forward slightly, giving him access to her neck and shoulders. His rough fingers were strong and warm against her and she tried very hard not to shiver every time he touched her bare skin.

"This'll be easier if you take your jacket off," Lincoln suggested. Olivia nodded and shrugged her jacket off slowly, aware of how intense he was watching her. She felt his hands on her again and bit her lip, shivering again at how almost electrical it felt to feel his hands on her. She sighed in content, relaxing under his touch after getting over her hyper-awareness of him, or at least, ignoring it. Soon, she felt herself get lost in it and was absently surprised by how much she was enjoying this. Massages normally hurt her, so why did this feel so good? His hands were like ambrosia on her stiff and sore muscles, the heat they gave off melting off the tension in them. She should have let him do this years ago!

Meanwhile, Lincoln was fighting a losing battle with himself. How often had he dreamt of holding, touching, caressing her? He struggled to keep this PG rated, unwilling to take advantage of her like that. He wouldn't do that to her. But that didn't stop his thoughts from going X rated. He shook his thoughts away, blinking unwanted images away and concentrated on the moment. Olivia however was making it hard on him, especially when she subconsciously scooted back, closer to him, and let out a sound of approval.

Lincoln's eyes darkened and he finally lost the battle, his hands trailing from her neck to her back, to her arms, caressing her in the way he dreamed of touching her... though they weren't exactly wearing clothes in his dreams. "Lincoln..." Olivia sighed, unaware that she did so, too wrapped in the feeling of his hands doing sinful things to her senses to realize what Lincoln was very close to doing. However, what might have driven another man forward, only served to snap Lincoln back to reality. His eyes widened and he immediately withdrew his hands, though a part of him screamed at him for being a pansy.

"I'm sorry, I got carried away," Lincoln apologized, standing from his spot next to her. Olivia opened her eyes, blinking away the fogginess of bliss and turned to look at him.

"It's okay," she said simply, too worried about the sudden surge of emotions that swelled within her to say anything else. Things were getting too dicey, too complicated. Lincoln nodded and walked back to her computer. They sat in silence while he finished, their minds in their own little worlds.

"Okay, you're all set here," Lincoln said after he finished and stood. Olivia followed him to the door. "Do you need..." he paused, he had turned to look over to her and hadn't noticed she had followed him to the door. There was such a small gap between him and Olivia that it was driving him nuts. "Do you need anything else?" he asked in a softer voice. Olivia smiled a little and shook her head. Their proximity was affecting her as well but for the life of her, she couldn't force her feet to move, to step back. Neither of them noticed how much the other wanted to kiss each other. While Lincoln accepted his need to kiss her, but could not, Olivia reluctantly dismissed it and turned to look away.

"Thanks, Linc," she said. Lincoln continued to stare at her for a moment before he nodded.

"No problem, I should get back to work, I'll see you later, 'Liv," he said. Olivia let out a breath she didn't know she was holding when he left.

'What am I? Some teenager with a crush?' She thought angrily. Maybe she was? Why couldn't she get control of her emotions lately? She had been fine hiding everything before! Even after Frank left her... but now it all seemed to be catching up to her. Still, if she didn't get a control over herself, things could get ugly. She was _not _that weak! But... was it really weakness? If it was, then why did she always feel so strong whenever Lincoln was near? Olivia sighed in agitation and turned to continue her work. The rest of the day was spent either burrowing herself in work or paying undivided attention to Henry. She felt like an idiot for avoiding him, avoiding her feelings for him, but... she didn't want to get hurt again, even though a part of her told her she was an idiot for thinking Lincoln ever would.

Elsewhere, Secretary of Defense Walter Bishop gazed out of his window in his office. He watched the dying sun spill golden light over the hovering airships in the distance and onto visible quarantined areas nearby. He frowned bitterly at the sight of the golden substance covering a building, no doubt now permanently housing a score of people. He thought of how much he'd like to get the other Walter over here, amber him, and keep him as a trophy – after retrieving his son, and smiled wickedly.

But no, he could not, that would raise too many questions, get too many people on his back, even if they didn't know exactly what he did, and make it difficult for him to get his son back. He glared to himself, feeling furious. How could Peter choose that... that _impostor_ over him! It made his blood boil. He knew Peter would not help him with the machine now, he was too brainwashed by those treacherous fools to understand how vital it was!

No... Bishop had something else in mind. It was fortunate that Olivia showed up when she did. It was fortunate that she had told him of her encounter with Peter, all those years ago... he had been quietly watching _this _Olivia ever since, biding his time until he could use her to his advantage. He was counting on his son getting closer with her, the Olivia he first met, and was practically gleeful when he realized they were _very _close, close enough for her to come and take him back!

And now... this Olivia had successfully infiltrated, successfully fooled his son, and successfully bred with him... oh sure, it wasn't part of _her _mission, she hadn't thought of doing such a thing at first, possibly, but Peter was his flesh and blood, how could she resist him? No one could resist a Bishop. Bishop chuckled darkly to himself and smiled once more. No, she let her son's charms win her over, she let herself become pregnant... and that was exactly what Bishop was hoping for. Now, now he didn't _need _his son to activate the machine, he had a substitute! If his son didn't willingly choose to come back, he would have to find a way to... _persuade _him.

"Sir?" Dr. Brandon queried quietly, watching the man gaze into the cityscape.

"Yes?" Bishop asked without turning from the window.

"We're ready. The modifications for the substitute are complete, it will now accommodate a smaller body," the scientist explained.

Bishop finally turned to the man and smiled. Brandon felt pins prickle up his spine at the sinister look on the Secretary's face. "Thank you for informing me," Bishop smirked and followed the man. The two walked down several levels, riding elevators to the very bottom, and then taken another elevator, closed off to the public, and headed to the lowest level of the basement. They passed several security details and twists and turns until they finally made it to the underground laboratory. Bishop looked at how perfectly the machine had been refitted and grinned.

"Is it to your liking sir?" Brandon asked.

"Yes it is. Good man, you've just helped save our universe," Bishop praised. The two stood, stared up at the enormous and intimidating machine, gazing at it in splendor. "Soon we'll need to place the next phase into motion..." Bishop muttered and turned to his scientist. "You can use whatever resources you need to get him, but do not let Fringe or the police know about it, understood?"

"Yes sir," Brandon nodded and turned to deliver his orders to his team.

"Good, we will wait until tonight..." Bishop grinned.

_TBC_...

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><p><strong>End AN**: Don'tcha just love the tension? XD Ugh, why do I have to be so girly? OMG! Evil Walternate! Is it just me, or does Walternate seem a little like the Emperor from StarWars?

Shout-Outs: 

**katiekayx**: Yes, yes she does... Marilyn is a smart woman. XD


	6. Chapter 6

**Substitute**

**A/N**: Things get a little more interesting from here...

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><p>The next morning, Lincoln and Charlie had just gone on a dangerous mission, unfortunately, Lincoln was once again injured while on the field. "Ugh..." Lincoln groaned, every move Charlie did to help the younger man to the infirmary made his injured leg and side burn with excruciating pain.<p>

"I told you to move out of the way, man," Charlie muttered, trying not to jar his partner around too much.

"How was I supposed to know you were serious? You were smiling!" Lincoln snapped, pain and agitation making him irate.

"It was the gas! It wasn't me!" Charlie protested.

"Yeah, you're right, it _was_ the gas, after I specifically told you to use your oxygen tank!"

Charlie didn't think Lincoln's face could get any redder. "I did!" He sputtered.

"I told you not to stop!" Why couldn't Charlie just follow orders today? If Charlie had just followed orders they wouldn't be in this mess. Sure Charlie would have a pretty big headache right now, but still, they would have been able to finish the mission much sooner... well, at least Charlie would have.

"I had to get you out of the way!" Charlie yelled back defensively. Was it just him, or was Lincoln's mood steadily getting worse each day?

"I was perfectly fine, I didn't need you to push me out of the way!" Lincoln knew they were probably making a scene but he was too frustrated and too much pain to care right now.

"Well I'm sorry that I was concerned for the life of my partner and friend!" Charlie said sharply, turning to glare at said friend.

"Gah! Ah shit..." Lincoln gasped, his eyes widening. The sudden jerking movements created by their argument caused him to stretch his wounds, tearing them slightly. Charlie caught him again from collapsing and hurried the pace.

"Sorry," Charlie muttered. "You okay?" he asked worriedly. True, Lincoln had had wounds _far _worse than this, but he never lost this much blood so quickly before.

"I'll be fine as soon as we get to the infirmary," Lincoln sighed. The two continued toward the medical wing in silence.

"Hello _again_, Agent Lee," Melissa, the Nurse that had been primarily taking care of Lincoln when he got burned, smiled at him as he and Charlie walked in. She frowned in concern at his injuries and went to get her supplies.

"Hey there Melissa, nice to see you again, how's kid?" Lincoln asked, trying to put off all pain from his face. Lincoln was of course referring to Melissa's puppy back at home, 'Kid'.

"He's just fine, getting bigger each day," Melissa replied with a fond smile. She grabbed her supplies and prepared to treat him. Charlie watched her work, wondering again how it was that Lincoln got almost _every_ female he met to fall for him, and _he_ didn't have such luck? He knew Melissa had a crush on him but was too shy to do anything about it... poor girl, she didn't stand a chance. "Wow, this looks bad," Melissa frowned.

"It's just a scratch," Lincoln shrugged, smiling lopsidedly. Lincoln slipped into the act of nothing being wrong, pulling off acting like a goof while he was inwardly distressed. He did not want to bring others down with his dark mood, especially not someone as kind and gentle as this girl. Charlie could handle it, but he wasn't sure others could. They wanted to see their leader strong and in control, not a wreck and snapping at everyone.

"You think you're being cute, don't you?" Melissa teased him, cleaning his wound up and preparing to seal it.

"I _am_ cute, I don't have to _think_ I'm being cute," Lincoln teased back.

"Are you two done flirting?" Charlie asked teasingly, chuckling a little when Melissa's cheeks burned bright red.

"We're not flirting," Lincoln protested. "Right Melissa?" he asked with his best "charming" smile. Poor girl.

"R-Right," she cleared her throat. "Right you are Agent Lee, we're just having a pleasant conversation," she corrected herself. She was proud of herself. She first met Lincoln when he had been burned and only fleetingly saw him when he was completely healed... he was quite the male specimen, there was no doubt there. She didn't think she stood a chance with someone like him though.

Charlie was impressed. "Fair enough," he said, his hands up. After Melissa finished up and bid them farewell, the two men walked back over to the main hall. "You sure you're okay on your feet? Melissa said it'd take a while for your wounds to heal up and that you shouldn't walk too much," Charlie mentioned.

"I'm fine now, she's good at her job," he shrugged. "You still owe me a beer by the way," Lincoln reminded him.

"Damn, I thought you'd forget," Charlie grinned.

"You never pay anyone back do you?" Lincoln shook his head.

"Of course I do..." Charlie gave him his most serious and_ seriously fake_ looking expression. "Hey man, I'm really sorry about earlier," Charlie said suddenly, feeling the guilt return as Lincoln let a pained expression form in his face as he sat down at his desk.

"I understand, it's fine, just... try to just do as I say next time, okay? Don't be a hero," Lincoln shrugged. Charlie shook his head, wondering what was on his friend's mind that would make him talk like that. Before he could question it though, Lincoln got a call. "Lee," he answered.

"_Lincoln!" _It was Olivia.

"Olivia?" The men sat up straighter. Charlie looked on questioningly, noting the spooked look in his commanding officer's face. "What's wrong?" Lincoln asked in alarm, his heart racing in his chest. She sounded almost like she did when she had called him from China-town. Something was wrong, terribly wrong!

"_Henry – he – he, he's gone! I can't find him anywhere!" _She said in hysterics. Lincoln could hear her moving around, heard tearing and breaking sounds... she was ripping her apartment apart looking for the boy.

"Stay right there, I'll be there as fast as I can, do you hear me? Just _stay there_!" Lincoln told her quickly, moving to stand and groaning in pain at the sudden movement. While normally they would have the technology to fix an injury very quickly, some injuries took longer to heal to ensure the body did reject the treatment... this was one such treatment, and it only served to hamper Lincoln's efforts at the moment.

"Hey! What's going on?" Charlie questioned, standing as well and watching in shock as Lincoln practically ran out of his office, even in as much pain as he was in. "Hey! Wait a minute!" Charlie said, following him. "Sir!" he called, hoping that would let Lincoln know how serious he was.

Luckily, it worked and Lincoln slowed to a stop in the main hall, ignoring the looks everyone was giving the Chief. He glanced over at him, Charlie was expecting something, but he wasn't smirking or looking smug, Lincoln gave him a very serious face. Uh oh. "Henry has been taken. Olivia can't find him anywhere in her apartment. I'm going to go over there, you're in charge while I'm gone, do what you need to do to find him," Lincoln ordered.

"What? You can't leave in your state! Look at yourself, you've about to fall over! Look, I'll go over there, you're place is here, you need to take control and-" Charlie was interrupted.

"My place is with Olivia!" Lincoln suddenly yelled. He knew where his place was, he knew his _job _was to be the head of Fringe Division, his "place" was there, but at the moment, he just couldn't think that way. He had a promise to keep and he was damned if he didn't keep it! There was silence all around him. The other nearby agents had heard well enough and were stunned by the sudden explosion. Lincoln quieted down and turned to Charlie. "There is no time to argue, don't make me pull rank. I trust you can handle this. I'm worried Olivia will do something crazy, okay? You're in charge until I get back," Lincoln ordered.

"Understood, sir. Go to her," Charlie said respectfully once more, making his friend smile slightly.

"Thanks Charlie," Lincoln said in relief.

"No problem, buddy," Charlie nodded, watching his old friend speed off. The incredible pain was obviously not enough to keep him from the one he loved. This was why nice girls like Melissa didn't stand a chance. Charlie turned to the other silent agents and frowned. "Alright, listen up! I need lists, cameras, witnesses, I want every bit of information you can get on Agent Dunham's previous abduction, we've got a missing "man" to find!" Charlie began, barking orders left and right.

While Charlie coordinated with teams to track Henry down, Lincoln drove furiously to Olivia's apartment, hoping she didn't disregard his order and go off to search for her son. When he got to the apartment and knocked on the door, he was surprised to see Olivia standing there, shaking like a leaf. She wasn't crying, she wasn't allowing herself to cry, he knew she was trying to be tough, but she looked bad... very bad. "Linc..." she said, blinking furiously. She would not cry, damnit. "He's gone, he's gone!"

Lincoln's body screamed at him in pain but he ignored it. However, Olivia wasn't blind enough to miss how much of a pained expression he tried to hide. While she subconsciously wondered what was wrong, she was too distracted at the moment to comment about it, instead, she pulled him over to sit on the couch. "I'm here now, everything is going to be fine... I put Charlie in charge while I'm here, he is searching for Henry as we speak. I'll join him in a bit but right now I'm here for _you_," Lincoln said as they sat down. Olivia was a little speechless but then, could she expect any less from him? "Olivia, what happened? Tell me everything," he ordered softly.

Olivia took a breath, before she started to hyperventilate and nodded, reassured that he was there for her and trusting him completely, like she always had. "I first noticed something was off when I woke up... not long ago," she admitted. "I was just so tired, I hadn't slept much, as you know, and..." she trailed off, shaking her head.

"Go on," Lincoln said, moving just a little closer.

"I never woke up during the night, When I _did _wake up I flew out of bed, thinking my poor baby would be crying but... I didn't hear anything. I thought he had died while I slept!" She said fiercely. "What if he died? What if he had been crying and I didn't here him? What kind of a mother am I? I killed my own son!"

Lincoln shook his head and pulled her close. "But you didn't, you _didn't_, you hear me? None of this was your fault, 'Liv" Lincoln reminded her, holding her tight against him. Olivia leaned into his warm embrace, feeling safe and cared-for, something she had been resisting, but she'd be damned if she were going to reject him now.

"Could it... could it have been the people who abducted me?" She asked, her voice trembling a little. She wanted to, oh God how she wanted to, but she would not let herself cry! She had to be strong, for herself and for Henry.

"I honestly don't know," he said with a deep frown.

"Lincoln... I didn't find him in his crib but all the doors and windows were locked," she told him seriously. Lincoln stared at her for a moment, his expression rigid and serious, trying to come up with a reasonable explanation. The only thing he could think of was that it was either someone who had access to her apartment or had been there before...

Lincoln reached over to his phone. "This is Lee," he began. Olivia watched him, wondering what he would do.

_"What can I do for you Captain?"_ Astrid asked.

"Is Lieutenant Francis still there?"

_"Yes sir, he is," _Astrid said, glancing over to where Charlie had pulled every resource he could think of for a man-hunt, including herself.

"Have him send an investigation team to my location," he ordered.

_"Right away sir,"_ Astrid said as professionally as ever.

"Thank you agent," Lincoln said, tapping his phone again. Olivia and Lincoln sat and waited in mostly silence, both deep in thought but neither leaving each others' side. Olivia was almost lulled to sleep by being surrounded by the sound of Lincoln's strong heart and the feeling of warmth and security when there was a knock on the door. Lincoln smiled at her and went to answer it.

"How can we assist, sir?" A young female agent asked.

"Agent Dunham's child has been kidnapped from this apartment but there is apparently no trace of who did it or how," Lincoln explained.

"We'll do our best, sir," the agent swore. The three investigators went at it, using the best technology they had available to aid them. Unfortunately, they could not find anything. "I'm sorry, sir, ma'am, we couldn't find anything other than footprints from the front door to the crib," the agent apologized.

"Are you sure?" He asked, feeling his muscles tense with worry and agitation.

"Yes, sir, I'm sorry sir..." another agent nervously apologized.

"It's fine, you're dismissed, thank you agents," Lincoln said with a wave of dismissal. When the team left, Lincoln returned to a wide eyed Olivia who was staring off into space. "'Liv?" he probed. He wanted so badly to go off and join the investigation, he had to find Henry and beat the crap out of whoever took him, but he had to make sure Olivia was okay. "Hey, are you okay?" Lincoln asked her, who hadn't said a word since the team arrived.

"Stupid question, Linc," she finally said with a weak smile as she looked up at him.

"Yeah, sorry," he smiled sadly back. He walked back over and sat with her. When he opened his arms and Olivia actually moved into his embrace again, it had surprised him a little... he wasn't about to start complaining though. He sighed inwardly and rested his chin atop her head. Part of him, despite the circumstances, felt immensely content, having Olivia in his arms like this. "I swear to you I'll do everything in my power to get him back," he promised. "I should go help the investigation," he said suddenly, moving to stand.

"Wait, you're injured," Olivia tugged at him, stopping him from getting up all the way.

"I'm fine," he brushed it off.

"No, your not, you're as bad a liar as I am," Olivia shook her head.

"Henry is more important now than my own welfare," he told her. Olivia stared at him, a little bit in wonder, a little bit incredulous. While she knew that he would be a great asset to the investigation, Charlie could handle things for now, she didn't want him to further injure himself and... if she were being honest with herself, she didn't really want him to leave her side either.

"You should take better care of yourself, Linc... you're too damn reckless all the time," she argued.

Lincoln smiled sadly and nodded. "I'm only ever really reckless around you, 'Liv..." he told her, half-seriously, trying to lighten the mood. That line would make any other woman swoon, however, Olivia wasn't like other women. Olivia, despite the situation and her desperation to find her son, couldn't help but snort and smile a little in amusement.

"You're cheesy around me too..." she teased half-heartedly. "Lincoln... I know this sounds crazy coming from me but... I don't want to be alone right now. Will you... stay with me?" she asked, her eyes wide. She was surprised with herself for asking but she suddenly felt extremely vulnerable, and hated herself for it, but she _really_ didn't want him to leave. "Just a little longer, Charlie is capable of handling this for now," she reasoned. It was true, Charlie may be the less serious of the three but he was still good at his job and hand leadership qualities... Lincoln was just more natural at it and took his job more seriously than Charlie.

Lincoln was speechless by her request but didn't say anything about it. Instead, he sat back down and pulled her closer. He was torn between wanting to find Henry and being there for Olivia but... in the end, she was right, he was too emotionally attached to this "mission", it might be best to just let Charlie handle things for now and help him tomorrow. He could feel her trembling but she was still holding back. If she kept that up, she would have a _real _breakdown this time. "'Liv, it's me, you don't have to act so tough, you don't have to be so strong, you're allowed to feel like shit... I won't think any less of you," he whispered.

Olivia nodded in understanding and closed her eyes. Maybe she didn't have to be so strong... she was so tired, this shitty world was running her down and it seemed to want to drag everyone she care for along with her.

Soon enough he felt her tremble again but this time saw the tears. Lincoln's hold on her tightened, pulling her flush against him and rubbed her arms soothingly. Olivia cried against him for a good while, hating herself for it but unable to stop. Lincoln kept his hold on her but neither spoke. After a while he felt her go limp in his arms and knew she had fallen asleep. Lincoln pulled her with him as he made himself comfortable, intending to be there when she work up, and leaned back. He shut his eyes and in no time, was fast asleep as well.

Looking back he would remember this moment as being the first time in a while that he had slept so well.

_TBC_...

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><p><strong>End AN**: Oh noes! Not Henry! Who _didn't _see that coming? FINALLY _something _with Lincoln and Olivia, huh?

Shout-Outs: 

**katiekayx:** You're so needy! I can only do so much, woman D: glad you like it though :P have I mentioned how much I love your reviews? XD

**AnneRG**: Glad you liked it! Yesss I wouldn't mind having Lincoln's hands on me either XD lol...

**Jill Cohen**: How do you know it'll be Lincoln that saves the day? XD

**Fallen Heart**: Yeah, I like stories that ease into certain things, such as romance, it's a tad bit more realistic in my opinion... though I could be exaggerating this lol. Glad you like it!


	7. Chapter 7

**Substitute**

**A/N**: Here we go! Covert-ops tiemz! Yes?

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><p>The early morning light washed away the overwhelming darkness of the night, as it always did, but this morning didn't seem all that brighter. They hadn't moved from their spot on the couch, all night. While Lincoln had intended to go help Charlie as soon as he could, he hadn't wanted to leave Olivia in the state she was in. So, he had stayed, stayed with her the whole night. Lincoln was the first to awake that morning. He was a bit confused for a moment, wondering why his room looked so strange, until he remembered the events of the day before.<p>

Lincoln craned his head slightly to look down at the still sleeping woman in his arms and couldn't help but smile. How often was it that he dreamed of waking up just like this? With Olivia curled up against him? His musing was cut short when a rather sharp knock on the door made him jump and spurred Olivia awake. "Lincoln?" Olivia questioned, still half-asleep. Reality seemed to rush back to her in a second after the realization that he really _was _there. "I'm sorry," she said, blushing in embarrassment.

Lincoln thought it was the cutest damn look he had ever seen from her.

"It's no problem, I told you I'd be here for you, hadn't I?" He reminded her. Olivia smiled, unsure of how to respond. She _did _remember him saying that, several times, and felt her awareness of him deepen each time. Why was she fighting it again? "Come on, maybe that's Charlie with some good news," Lincoln reluctantly let Olivia go and they stood to answer the door. "Hey! It's easier to walk today!" he realized with a lighter smile. While his body would be encouraged to heal on its own, the treatment sped up the process as any of their healing procedures did.

"What happened to you exactly?" Olivia asked.

"I'll tell you about it when this is all over," Lincoln promised and opened the door. The two agents were a little surprised to find the Secretary standing there, a bouquet of flowers in his hand.

"I just recently became aware of the sad news," Bishop said with a "sad" expression. "Agent Francis informed me that my grandson hasn't been found yet, I had no idea he was mission. How are you doing, my dear?" he asked in "concern".

Olivia tilted her head to the side a fraction in guarded curiously. Something seemed... _off _about the man. "I'm doing better than I was yesterday, sir, thank you" Olivia confessed anyway. Even if she smelled something fishy, she didn't exactly want the Secretary to know about it. She had been starting to doubt the man ever since he recommended her for her mission... but the seed of doubt just began to spread the more she thought of how much of a wreck she had caused the other Olivia and betrayed everyone's trust... they hadn't seemed like monsters at all, they had seemed just like the people she knew, just that they had made a few different choices, that's all.

"Here, I know this isn't much, but I hope you accept my deepest condolences," the Secretary handed her the flowers.

"He's not gone for good, sir, we'll find him," Lincoln told him firmly.

Bishop turned to the young man and frowned inwardly, noticing the confidence and determination in his eyes... this wouldn't do. "Yes, I'm sure you will," he nodded at him anyway, then smiled fleetingly. "Well, I best be going, I wish you agents luck finding my dear grandson," he finally said, turning sharply and heading out. When Lincoln closed the door Olivia turned to him.

"I don't trust him," she said bluntly.

"To tell you the truth, neither do I," Lincoln agreed.

"Something isn't right here, Lincoln, something about the Secretary doesn't seem sincere, at all, he's hiding something... and I think it has something to do with Henry," she clarified. Lincoln nodded solemnly, he understood what she meant. What was more distressing though was that Olivia was usually spot on when it came to a person's character, and if she sensed that the Secretary wasn't being sincere, hiding something, and was involved with Henry's disappearance, he'd be damned if he didn't try to see what was up.

"'Liv, I need to join the search, I have to find him, okay? I have to see about the Secretary. If what you say is true..." he trailed off. If the Secretary was lying, if he wasn't the benevolent man he made himself appear to be, thing could get really ugly really quickly. "Anyway, I don't think Charlie can hold the fort together for too long," he added, making Olivia grin weakly and nod in agreement. "Are you feeling better? I mean, I know you told the Secretary you were okay, but this is me here..."

"I know," Olivia nodded. "I won't lie, I'm still incredibly worried for Henry, I want him back, badly, but my head feels a little clearer now," she assured him. "Thank you, Lincoln," she smiled.

Lincoln smiled happily. "It was nothing," he shrugged.

"You're wrong, you don't know how much it means to me that you're always here for me. If you hadn't been here for me... I don't know what I would have done," she shook her head. She was caught off guard when she was suddenly pulled into his arms again. She couldn't help but relax in his embrace, wrapping her own arms around him and resting her head on his chest, right under his jaw.

"I'll be back," he whispered, again surprising her by kissing her forehead. However, when he started to pull away again, Olivia found the idea unbearable, at least, without letting him know just how much she felt about this, felt about him being there for her, helping her, loving her... she felt like something bad was about to happen and she just couldn't bear the thought of him risking his life for her and Henry without... _something. _When he started to walk away, she found herself catching his wrist. He paused and turned back to look at her questioningly. "'Liv?" he asked but stopped.

In fact, he stopped breathing altogether.

Lincoln held very still as Olivia moved forward, too afraid that the slightest movement would break whatever type of mood they were locked in. The look she was giving him was a look she had given Frank when they first started dating, when she wasn't sure about giving the guy a chance. Hope sneaked into him. While _his _heart hammered in his chest, Olivia's wasn't much better. She reached up, tentatively moving her fingers along his rough jaw, glancing down to his tempting lips. It was a sudden impulse that made her do it, it was the sudden need to feel him all around her, take in his scent and get lost in it, feel his protection, comfort, and love, that made her reach forward and close the gap, placing her lips over his.

Lincoln was hesitant, afraid she'd reject him, but leaned in further, kissing her back. Lincoln could tell Olivia was holding back but didn't push her. The kiss was short and chaste but it left them breathless as they pulled apart. Their foreheads touched for a moment, their eyes locked on each other. "I'll find him," Lincoln promised once more, reaching forward to take her cheek in his hand, caressing it lovingly. Olivia shut her eyes, leaning into the loving touch and feeling the raw sincerity and affection for her pouring out of him. Lincoln stood there a moment longer before he reluctantly pulled away, his fingers slipping from her cheek slowly as he backed up. "I promise," he vowed softly, turning and heading off.

Olivia watched him go, certain that she had done the right thing and thinking that maybe there was room for another in her life... but... maybe this wasn't the right time to think about that. 'Be safe,' she thought as she shut the door and locked it. She turned and began to clean her apartment up before settling in front of her computer and making her own effort to find her son. She wanted to go off and join the investigation as well, give her two-cents and all, but she knew if she were there, she'd just make a fool out of herself and let her emotions toward her son get the better of her. She couldn't allow that. Instead, she conducted her own investigation and contacted those she trusted around her apartment to see if they had any information about strangers in the night.

Meanwhile, Lincoln rushed to Fringe HQ and limped his way inside. People scurried out of his way as he made his way purposefully to the main hall, where all the action was usually. "Give me some good news," he said loudly, making his presence known. People seemed to sit straighter. That would usually make his ego dance a little, but right now, he wasn't in the mood to indulge in that kind of foolishness, even if the kiss he shared with Olivia still made him feel giddy on the inside. He had business to take care of.

"Sir, good to see you," Charlie said as he walked up to him and handing him a cup of "coffee". "We spent all night on the case but even with our vast sources, we..." he clenched his teeth, trailing off, seeing the severe look Lincoln's face morphed into. The taller man placed the cup down and stared at his friend.

"You didn't find anything?" he finished in a clipped tone. He could just imagine Henry scared, cold, hunry, alone... everything bad rushed into his mind. No, not Henry! He cared too much about the boy, more than he should maybe... he just had to get him back!

"No, sir, we didn't" Charlie confirmed. He would probably pay later for calling his buddy "sir" so much recently but right now was no time to be disrespectful, especially when things were so serious.

"Nothing? Nothing at all?" Lincoln balled his hands into tight fists. Charlie took a nervous step back. While Lincoln would normally never do something like beat someone up for failing him – he wasn't that type of guy and he didn't know many people who were – Charlie just didn't want to have to take the brunt of the younger man's rage and _possibly _get punched. Luckily, Lincoln seemed to get a hold of himself and let out a breath. "Sorry," he smiled, though it looked more like a grimace than anything else. "I know it isn't your fault, you did good Charlie," he praised.

"Thanks man," Charlie smiled back. Lincoln glanced around at the other agents, busy at work still trying to find _something_ and then gestured for Charlie to follow him into his office. "What's up?" the scarred man asked.

"The Secretary paid 'Liv a visit this morning," Lincoln began.

"He did?" Charlie wasn't too surprised.

"Yeah. I thought that maybe he was truly worried for 'Liv but..." he shook his head. "Even _I_ thought he didn't seem to care too much, but 'Liv doesn't trust him, at all. She's suspicious of him, and if Olivia Dunham is suspicious of someone, _I _am suspicious of someone," Lincoln folded his arms.

"You two and your Vulcan Mind-meld..." Charlie shook his head. "But in all honesty, I agree. What do you want to do? I think the Secretary mentioned something about having an important meeting to attend to today and to not bother him... we can't exactly question him," he explained.

"It wouldn't be a good idea to make wild, unfounded accusations to one of the most powerful men in America either," Lincoln reminded him. "But if he's not going to be in his office..."

"You're going to make me put all my training to work, aren't you?" Charlie smirked.

"I am. I know you can handle it. We're going to sneak into the Secretary's office and find evidence," Lincoln instructed.

"Lead the way, boss," Charlie gestured, trying to lighten the mood a bit. Lincoln didn't comment on it, didn't even smile, he was completely focused. Maybe there was more than one reason why Lincoln was the one that got promoted and not him. The two decided against bringing anyone else into their plan, though they let Astrid know a little of what was going on so she could pull some strings if things got too dicey.

The men decided the best way to sneak into Liberty Tower was to go through the front door with everyone else. They got there quickly, unsure of how much time they had to complete their mission. While Lincoln turned on his charms to dazzle the Secretary's assistant, Charlie "borrowed" the Secretary's office key. After bidding her a good day, they back-tracked, side-tracked, and snuck their way into the man's office. Lincoln quickly walked over to the man's desk, sitting on the seat.

"This guy has more passwords and mixed up codes than I bet the President does..." Lincoln muttered as he worked.

"Can you crack them?" Charlie asked curiously, peeking out of the cracked door.

"Of course I can," Lincoln muttered. Soon enough, the Fringe Division Chief did just that. "Here we go... let's see," he opened various files, letters, searched through calls he made, conversations he had, messages he took, every bit of information he could find. The more he searched, the more he was horrified with what he found. There was a lot of messed up stuff here, including plans for Henry... plans to use him on the machine, plans to _destroy _the other universe! And also old conversations and notes he took on the other Olivia and how the other Walter was the one that took Peter Bishop... it was all for revenge, nothing else. He didn't intend to help them, he intended to help himself!

Lincoln was just finishing explaining all of this to Charlie, who had walked over to get a look at the information for himself, and had just called Olivia when the door opened suddenly and in walked the man in question.

"_Linc? Lincoln are you there?"_ Olivia asked curiously. Had he found him? Was her baby okay? Was _he _okay?

"Crap," he muttered to himself, and to Olivia as well. "Mr. Secretary," Lincoln said instead of acknowledging her question, hoping to catch Olivia's attention. Luckily, it did. At least, she became quiet but didn't hang up.

"Agents? What are you-" Bishop paused when he noticed that Lincoln was searching through all his personal files. "I see..." he frowned deeply. "So you have discovered my plans, hm? You must now understand that I can't possibly let you go now with you knowing the truth. If people were to discover the truth, of my plans, of the universes, there would be mass-chaos. I can not allow that. As far as anyone else will know, you have violated my trust, sneaked into my office, and illegally made an investigation on me without my know-how," he shook his head, glaring and tapped his phone. "I want security to my position, immediately," he said, and turned back to the determined looking men. "You are no longer to be associated with Fringe or anything related to it, you're to be tried for treason and arrested immediately," he finished, just on time for the security detail to walk in. "Take them away," he ordered.

Lincoln and Charlie didn't fight it, they knew if they did they would be shot. Lincoln just hoped Olivia heard all of that. On the other side of the call, Olivia _had _heard it all... she knew the Secretary was up to no good and now she had her proof. Lincoln and Charlie must have found something, something severe enough to get them stripped of their positions and arrested... and she planned to finish what they started.

Olivia Dunham was back in action.

_TBC_...

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><p><strong>End AN**: Olivia to the rescue? Woo! Guh, they _finally_ kissed! (Again?) Yay! Damnit, it took them seven chapters to get that far!

Shout-Outs:

**Fallen Heart**: You forgot the ending? I guess I'll have to work harder and make them more memorable then :P. I think I'm more fond of the Red!Universe now lol... damn that last episode... I'm glad you liked it!

**katiekayx**: Are you happeh with this chapter? Lol... I certainly am! Lol, thanks! I'm worried about Henry too D: hurray for Lincoln and his awesomeness?


	8. Chapter 8

**Substitute**

**A/N**: Now we get to see Olivia kick some bad-guy ass! Woo hoo! :D

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><p>Olivia pulled on her bullet-proof mesh, strapped her weapons to her thighs, clipped on her phone, and shrugged on her leather jacket, zipping it up. She grabbed her car keys and left her apartment, determination and boiling fury toward the evil in the world adding fire to her steps. She sped off in her car, right toward Liberty Island, hoping her partners were still somewhere in the tower. She would find them first.<p>

Olivia was trained as an infiltrator since before she could remember. She was trained to sneak into places undetected, sneak passed security and take down men twice her size quietly. She didn't know why she was trained so differently than her peers had been in the past, but she wasn't complaining now. There were quite a few security checks within the tower but she got passed most of them without too much trouble... for now. When she reached the Secretary's office, she smiled at the assistant. "Hello, I'm Agent Dunham, with Fringe," she began, showing the woman her show-me. "Is the Secretary in? I have a few questions for him..." she said in as kind a voice as she could muster at the moment.

"Oh! Another Fringe officer? Are you looking for the other two? I think something happened, they were escorted out of his office a little while ago... funny, I didn't see them go in..." the assistant blinked in confusion.

"Do you know where he took them? See I need to let my superiors know about this but first I need to know where they currently are..." Olivia pressed with a shrug, snorting inwardly about the "superiors" bit. The woman didn't need to know that her superiors was one of the men and the Secretary himself.

"No, I'm sorry... he didn't say much," the woman apologized. Olivia felt anger stir in her blood, covering her fear up as it always had, but paused when she began to leave when the assistant spoke again. "Although, I think I heard him say something about the basement to one of the security guards... much more than that I don't know, I'm sorry," she apologized again.

"That's fine, I'll just wait until I hear from him," Olivia lied with a shrug and a cheerful smile. "You've been great help, thanks!" she said, turning and leaving. 'The basement?' she wondered, sneaking passed guards toward the "hidden" elevator. She was competent enough to know that when the Secretary said "the basement" he must be referring to wherever it was this elevator went... she had seen a few serious looking guards go in it. She hid on the other side of the elevator door as she rode it, below the camera. As she rode it, she worked quickly to fool the camera to thinking no one was in it and as soon as the doors opened, she stayed still, waiting for the inevitable guard to come over and see who it was in it.

Once she saw the man enter the elevator, Olivia worked quickly to take the man down. The man's eyes bugged out of his eyes as he felt the wind get knocked out of him before his world went black. Olivia caught him, easing him to the floor carefully and moving him out of sight. She made sure he was still alive and worked her way onward. The halls were crawling with security guards but Olivia was patient, watching for patterns, how many steps they took to reach doors, lights, etc... anything she could to make sure she got passed them unnoticed.

Meanwhile, Charlie and Lincoln sat in their cell quietly. They had been roughly shoved in there half an hour ago. At first, Lincoln had tried to figure out a way to escape, looking for access panels, loose lights, anything that could help open the doors... but found nothing. He had slumped onto the bed and his head hung in defeat. Charlie had wanted to say something to cheer him up but knew that nothing would work, so, he stood by the glass, watching the guards walk up and down the hall. He was a little stumped when they stopped showing up though and leaned closer to the glass, trying to peer over to the side.

Charlie was startled and nearly fell backwards when a familiar face popped into view and he grinned widely. He walked over to a still depressed Lincoln. He smiled and smacked Lincoln's arm, receiving a glower. The younger man was not in a good mood, at all. "Look! It's our knight in shining leather armor!" he said happily. Lincoln jerked his gaze up to where Charlie was pointing only to see Olivia scanning the locking mechanism of the cell.

"Olivia!" Lincoln breathed, pushing himself onto his feet and rushing to the glass window. Of course, Olivia couldn't have possibly heard him, but she looked at him anyway. She gave him a reassuring smile and placed her hand over his that was resting against the glass. In the back, neither of them noticed Charlie roll his eyes and smile knowingly. A moment later, after searching his eyes, Olivia pulled back and scrutinized the mechanism again. She huffed in frustration. She didn't have time for this! With a burst of adrenalin, and maybe a bit of madness as well, she shot her fist at the keyboard, punching through it. She'd complain about the horrendous pain later, right now she had her partners to spring and her baby to save!

"Come on you two, let's go," Olivia said in a rush, grimacing slightly, starting to turn and run off. Lincoln's hand caught her wrist, halting her steps.

"'Liv? Your hand..." Lincoln took her hand in his, pulling her toward him slightly and looking at it in concern. Her hand was a bloody mess from what she had done and would no doubt be useless to her until she got it looked at. It looked pretty painful but when he looked up into her eyes, he didn't see pain, he only saw raw determination.

"I'm fine, there is no time for that, come on!" Olivia said, obviously distressed and in a hurry, but didn't extract her hand.

Lincoln nodded, running his thumb over the uninjured part of her hand, watching the hard look in her eyes soften a fraction, before reluctantly letting her go. They stole a meaningful, lingering glance at each other, their eyes speaking of support and love when the rest of them could or _would_ not. While Olivia tried to figure out what it all meant, Lincoln tried not to read too much into it. "Lead the way," he said and the men followed Olivia to the camera room.

While they went, Lincoln filled Olivia in on what he had found on Secretary Bishop. Olivia felt sick to her stomach. Not only was she played, manipulated into ruining the lives of perfectly normal people, good people, _herself _...she had helped him find a "tool" to be used to destroy an entire universe! "Olivia," Lincoln said sternly, seeing the self-deprecating expression on her face. Charlie saw it too, but Lincoln beat him to it. "None of this was your fault, okay? So stop whatever it is you're thinking of, right now. That's an order," Lincoln commanded. Olivia shook out of her dark thoughts and smiled weakly at him.

"Yes sir," she obeyed. Soon they made it to the camera room. Olivia knocked on the door with her good hand.

"What are you doing?" Charlie asked on confusion.

"If we bust in there they'll alert the whole place, we need to bring them out to us," Olivia explained, gesturing for the men to hide. They looked confused but did as she asked, moving out of view. When the door opened, one of the two men looked at her in surprise. Olivia gave him her most "damsel in distress" expression – which wasn't too hard to do, all things considered – and spoke in what she thought would be a "sexy" tone. "Can one of you nice men help me? I was on my way for a _meeting _with someone down here but I managed to get lost... this place is _oh_ so _big_..." she said, trying not to laugh.

Charlie and Lincoln almost choked on amusement as well but stayed silent. "A _meeting, _huh?" the man grinned, catching on to what Olivia was trying to say. "I bet _I_ could certainly _help_ a pretty miss like you out.." he grinned lewdly.

"You could? Oh that would be _wonderful_..." Olivia smiled seductively. The man looked back to smile at his partner, receiving a thumbs up from the other man, and followed Olivia out. When the door was closed, the man felt himself getting tapped on the shoulder. When he turned he saw two other men standing there. He was about to call for help when the taller of the two men shot his fist forward, right into his face, knocking him flat on his back.

Lincoln shook his hand. "Christ, that man had a hard face," he hissed, wincing in pain and gave Olivia a raised eyebrow. "This is your idea of espionage?" he asked in amusement.

Olivia smiled and shrugged. "It seemed to work in the movies," she smirked. "I guess now we're even," she teased, though her heart really wasn't in it at the moment, then sobered. "Come on, let's take care of this other guy..." she said, gesturing for Lincoln to handle this guard. Lincoln walked over to the door and opened it but making sure that he wasn't in view as he did so. He whistled and waited. In no time at all, the curious guard, who called for his partner curiously, exited the little room. Again, the man was overwhelmed by the ambush and knocked out just as quickly. The three moved the unconscious guards back into the room and shut the door.

"You think this place could have enough monitors?" Lincoln muttered as they glanced around.

"I think this place could use a few more, sure. You think anything good is on? Maybe the game is on! How do you change the channels on these things?" Charlie said playfully.

"Maybe later, Charlie," Olivia said quickly, distractedly, walking over to where Lincoln had seated himself and leaning slightly to watch.

It took him a few moments but he finally had something. "I think I found the _Secretary_... he's alone and one level below us, what is he doing?" Lincoln wondered, looking at the man displayed on the monitor. So far the Secretary had his back to the screen and the place looked pretty dark.

"I'll go, you guys stop anyone else from coming down, okay?" Olivia said, already leaving through the door before either men could stop her.

"She's going to get herself killed," Charlie hissed, watching her run off toward the elevator down the hall.

"She'll be fine, she's a trained agent, she can take care of herself," Lincoln reminded him, confident in Olivia's skills. "I'm going to try to mess with some of these cameras to hide what's going on down here and then get into contact with the President, let him know what's going on and who he put in charge of the DOD. Stand guard, will you?" He asked.

"Sure boss," Charlie nodded and went over to the door.

Olivia made her way down to the underground laboratory, slipping taking down anyone foolish enough to get in her way, including a few scientists that were stupid enough to think they could stop her. When she finally reached the entrance to the laboratory, paused at her last obstacle. This guard she knew though, what was he doing here? "Eric?" She questioned, her fists still up, even if one wasn't working too well.

"I'm sorry Olivia... I can't let you pass," he said regretfully. He and Olivia went on a few missions in the past. They weren't exactly buddies but they knew each other well and had watched each others' backs before.

"Eric you will either move out of my way or I'll make you move, understand? He has my son! Now, MOVE!" Olivia growled. Eric knew who he was dealing with and threw up his hands, backing away. He knew that even though he had an advantage over her in strength, Olivia Dunham could still kick his ass, no problem. Normally, you don't mess with an angry Olivia, but now she was angry _and _an angry mother! "Don't do anything stupid, Eric, just stay put," Olivia warned as she headed through the door. Eric sighed in relief and did as he was told, figuring she had a good enough reason to do what she was doing... wait.. she was an angry... mother? Since when?

Olivia burst through the last of the doors, weapon at the ready, making Walter Bishop whirl around in surprise. "Ah, if it isn't Ms. Dunham... it's so good of you to join me," Bishop smiled.

"Don't play this off like you've been expecting me, _Mr. Secretary,_" Olivia snarled. "Give me my son back!" She ordered, her grip on her pistol tightening.

"I'm afraid I can't do that..." Bishop's smile disappeared. "He is vital to the good of this universe, you must understand that," he explained.

"I must _nothing_, you're a mad man and nothing you're doing is for the good of anyone - except yourself!" Olivia countered.

"You are wrong!" Bishop yelled, pulling out a pistol from his pocket. Olivia froze, her own pistol still pointing at him but unsure of how crazy the man was... one false move and he could shoot, if only from fear. Instead, Olivia decided tricking him would be easier. All she did was glance over his shoulder, a momentary flicker away from his eyes... but it was enough to make him think there was someone behind him, enough to make his own eyes leave her's. Olivia rushed in, knocking the pistol out of his hand. Unfortunately, Bishop was quicker than he looked and surprised her by shoving her back and turning to grab something from behind him... a sleeping baby... _her _baby!

"What are you doing?" She questioned, trying to keep her voice from giving away how frantic she was. She was Olivia Dunham, so she succeeded.

"One more step and I'll crush his throat, understood?" Bishop threatened. As if to emphasize that he meant business, Henry started balling is eyes out. Olivia felt her heart go to her son, wanted desperately to grab him and keep him from all the harms of the world... but she didn't move an inch.

"This is crazy, you _need _him, for your plans, remember?" Olivia said as calmly as her shot nerves would allow her to.

"I know very well what I need him for, foolish girl," Bishop snapped. "But he was just a substitute... all I need to do is get my son over here and I can still complete my work and save this universe!" Bishop explained. Olivia was no longer dealing with a sane man here, a man who just wanted to get his son back, no, Secretary Walter Bishop was completely insane.

Meanwhile, while Charlie continued to stand guard, Lincoln was deep in communication with the President... who didn't exactly believe him. "I know Mr. President, but you have to understand, he went through great pains to hide all of this from us, even you, sir," Lincoln explained.

"I just don't believe that gentle, kind, man could be the sociopath you're describing!" The President argued.

"I'm sending you the evidence, sir, it'll tell you everything you need to know," Lincoln said, forwarding all the information they found to his computer. As he watched the increasing look of surprise and revulsion spread across the President's face, Lincoln took a moment to glance at the other monitors. His own eyes widened at what he saw. He saw the Secretary holding Henry menacingly and Olivia kicking her gun away, putting her hands up. No! "I'm sorry Mr. President, something urgent has come up, please review what I sent you. I'll be sure to contact you again, sir," Lincoln said, cutting the connection and rushing out.

"What's going on?" Charlie asked on high alert, following his still more or less limping friend down the hall.

"Charlie, I need you to get reinforcements, I don't care how you do it, how you convince whoever the Secretary told about us being traitors, just get them to listen and get me a squad down here," Lincoln instructed without looking at him.

"You got it boss," Charlie nodded and rushed off in the opposite direction.

Back at the lab, Bishop was _still _trying to convince Olivia to let him use her son, that it was for her own good, for the good of their universe, that the other universe was full of monsters, impostors and wickedness... Olivia tried her best not to snatch her baby and blow the man's head off his shoulders. She narrowed her eyes in caution when she saw another figure slip into the lab.

"I'll make you understand! You'll all thank me when this is done! I'll be a hero!" Bishop said vehemently, Henry still crying quite loudly in his hands. "You'll see! I'll-" Bishop's rant was interrupted when he felt immense pain shoot through the back of his head and his vision get fuzzy. Lincoln surged forward and fell to the floor, catching the falling baby from Bishop's hands when said man tilted over.

"Lincoln!" Olivia gasped, running over to them. The moment she recognized him, she was almost overwhelmed with emotion. He had come for her! He had saved her son! Of course he would... he always did. Lincoln sighed in relief and shushed and soothed the baby a bit before Olivia reached them. He managed to quiet the uncertain baby down a bit just as his mother arrived. Lincoln smiled and handed the baby to a now nearly tearful Olivia. "Thank you, Lincoln, so much," she said, hugging and kissing her baby. The baby seemed to realize he was in his mother's arms again and quieted down.

"Any time," Lincoln replied, slumping to the ground from his awkward position and trying his best to ignore the throbbing ache in his leg. However, this wasn't the time or place to relax. Lincoln reluctantly forced himself to his feet and pulled his handcuffs out of his jacket. He moved over to the unconscious Secretary and cuffed him. Once he finished, he allowed himself to relax a little and glanced over at Olivia and Henry.

Olivia held Henry on her lap, caressing his cheeks, checking for injuries, and trying her best not to break down. Her tears she had tried to hold back all this time had stopped falling but she still looked like she was about to start crying. Lincoln limped his way over to her and slid down next to her on the floor. The two sat in silence but Lincoln could still see how fragile Olivia's nerves were, she was on the edge and shaking quite a bit. He drew his arm around her and pulled her against him. Olivia leaned her head against his shoulder and allowed the baby to sit on both of their legs - making sure it wasn't his injured leg first of course. She watched Lincoln rub her son's head and face gently, soothing the whimpering baby, and shut her eyes, feeling safe and warm once again, allowing herself to drop her guard, trusting that Lincoln would keep them safe.

Why was she fighting this again?

She couldn't remember.

And didn't care anymore.

It wasn't too long before Charlie arrived with a squad. He had to show them the evidence and let them hear the one-sided conversation Lincoln had with the Secretary to convince them, but it finally paid off. Charlie took one look at his two friends and decided to keep up the leader act for now. "Come on, let's get the Secretary outta here," Charlie ordered, glancing worriedly at his two best friends. They weren't going to move for a while, he figured, so instead turned to follow the other agents out, deciding to give the two some time alone.

_TBC_...

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><p><strong>End AN**: _Secretary_ Bishop is just the perfect antagonist to use lol... I'm sorry if someone didn't like this but oh well, the actual show probably won't turn out like my story... maybe... I hope SOME of it will though! Hehe.

Shout-Outs:

**Fallen Heart**: Thanks! I hope I'm not writing them out of character lol I was worried Olivia might be a little out of character in this chapter...

**katiekayx**: Thank you! I'm happy you think so! Yes, Walternate is a bad, bad man... XD


	9. Chapter 9

**Substitute**

**A/N**: Is anyone else particularly excited about this chapter? I sure am!

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><p>It had taken them a few hours, but they were finally back in Fringe HQ, or at least, the medical facility that they used, sitting on opposite beds of the infirmary. They had been reluctant to separate, and Olivia was even more reluctant to separate from Henry, but they had to be checked on in the medical facility, at least, Charlie had insisted on it, beating Lincoln to the punch.<p>

They stole fleeting glances as they walked to separate examination rooms. They hadn't talked yet, but they knew they needed to. While the doctors made sure there was nothing wrong with Henry, the nurses worked on Olivia's busted hand and re-treated Lincoln's previous injuries, scolding him for moving so much when he knew he shouldn't have. That was when Olivia got a glimpse at just how extensive Lincoln's leg injury was. He had a jagged wound, about nine inches long, running down his thigh. It was a deep wound that required more time to heal. Had he really been running around on _that_? The thought made Olivia shudder and feel horrible for putting him through all that pain.

Once the three had finally been given a clean bill of health and Lincoln was re-stitched, Olivia was given her baby back. They sat in silence. It was only when Henry began to fuss when the trance like state they were in was broken. Olivia smiled apologetically for Henry's shrill cry and pulled him to her. While her focus was mostly on her baby as she got him ready to feed, she could feel Lincoln's eyes on her. It didn't bother her. In fact, she almost felt giddy being this exposed before him... emotionally, not physically, he still couldn't really see anything with the blanket covering herself and Henry.

Olivia looked up and smiled almost shyly at him. Her breath was almost knocked out of her at the fierce intensity in his gaze. It made her feel giddy in a whole different way. They continued to sit in silence. Only the sound of Henry blissfully feeding away, more than relieved to be back safe in his mother's arms, was the only sound in the room. Once Henry finished and Olivia fixed her shirt, she adjusted the still lively baby in her arms and slipped out of bed.

"'Liv?" Lincoln questioned with a concerned frown.

"My legs aren't injured you know, ...not like your leg is, I can get up if I want," Olivia reminded him, walking over to his bed. She still felt terrible about his leg, but she knew that talking about it wouldn't do them any good right now. She sat down next to him, on the plastic chair nearby, their eyes never leaving each other. "You've always been there for me," she whispered, more to herself than to him.

"And I always will, I told you, there's no place else for me to be... no matter how much you think I annoy you..." Lincoln replied.

"You've never annoyed me," Olivia told him.

"No? Well, I bet I could if I spent enough time with you... like I plan to do..." Lincoln warned her.

"I don't think that could ever annoy me," Olivia smiled, and reached over, surprising him by caressing his cheek with her knuckles. It was Lincoln's turn to close his eyes in bliss, reveling in the feeling. Olivia felt another fluttery sensation deep within her when Lincoln turned his head and laid a soft kiss on her hand. When he opened his eyes, he couldn't believe the expression he saw in Olivia's face... it almost looked like... longing?

Olivia stood then, smiling in reassurance at the alarmed look Lincoln gave her, and stood for a moment, deep in thought, studying him. Lincoln stayed perfectly still, as if moving would make him fail whatever test he felt like he was in. Olivia now had a decision to make. She was tired of pushing him away and wanted to feel the same that he felt for her... but... she _did _already, didn't she? She felt herself give in to the little voice that spoke to her. She didn't just love him, she was _in love _with him, she had been for a long time.

It was time to stop running. Time to trust him, time to get over Frank, get over Peter, men who wouldn't be in her life. Lincoln was always there, ever since they met. She had his love and it was time to let him in. Olivia nodded once, smiling at the confused look in Lincoln's tired face, and pushed herself up, mindful of Henry, then leaned forward, placing a soft kiss on his lips. Lincoln sat still, not knowing whether to treat this as the real thing, or something fleeting, like a "thank you", so he didn't move.

However... when Olivia's lips parted a little and she ran her tongue along his bottom lip, he had his answer... she wasn't looking for something fleeting! Olivia was a little confused and a little hurt when Lincoln hadn't moved to return the kiss. Had he changed his mind? The thought was almost too much to bear. She meant to pull back and apologize, in case he _didn't _want this, but as soon as she tried to, she felt his hand run through her hair, stopping her from leaving and forcing her back against his lips.

Olivia sighed into the kiss, relaxing against his mouth as the kiss became more than it had been. When she parted her lips again, she was relieved to find him responding, and shivered pleasantly when she felt his own tongue touch her's. Oh God, she now realized how much she had wanted this, ever since they shared at awkward, fleeting kiss, two years ago. It might have been fleeting, but she had been surprised by how _good _it felt... now this? This was ecstasy. Had she ever met such an amazing kisser? She didn't think so.

The kiss deepened. Their heads tilted to either side, their mouths slanted, their tongues dueled, their breaths became labored. Heat coursed through them and it was the best thing ever. It was unbelievable. They lost themselves in it, dove into it, expressing every raw emotion, everything they couldn't say with words. The more she kissed him, the more she felt like she couldn't get enough of him. As cliché as it was, she had never felt this way with anyone else, not even Frank, not even Peter. She wanted to dive into everything that was Lincoln Lee. He made her head spin, heart race, palms sweat, every cliché phrase you could think of. She only hoped he was experiencing the same.

She had no idea.

Lincoln was in heaven. Period. He almost felt like this was another cruel dream he would wake up from. But it wasn't! When the need of oxygen made them dizzier than they already were, they reluctantly separated. Their eyes burning with everything they couldn't say, or didn't know how to. "Lincoln," Olivia whispered, but couldn't say anything more, not that she would complain. Lincoln reached up again, crushing his lips against her's in an urgent kiss. Olivia had to make sure she had a good grip on Henry, for she felt like she would literally fall from the fervency of his kiss. Olivia wanted so badly to run her own hands through his hair, over his shoulders, chest, to feel his muscles ripple and flex under her fingers as he strained to stay in the bed... but she settled for leaning against him as much as poor Henry – who was trapped between them, but oddly didn't seem to mind too much – let her.

Henry, on the other-hand, watched them in confused curiosity. His mommy and _daddy _were smacking faces again... why did they do that? Whatever reason it was, Henry didn't like it... because it took away their attention from him! And so, Henry did what every baby instinctively knew how to do... he began to make a fuss, whimpers at first... but that did nothing, a little crying seemed to help, their smacking seemed to slow, as if they didn't believe his sincerity. He would fix that. With a deep breath, Henry began to cry.

Lincoln and Olivia pulled away, startled by the cry and both looked over at the baby. "Looks like he wants some of your attention too," Lincoln smiled and they both laughed. Olivia gestured for him to scoot over and Lincoln did so, moving so she would sit on the side where his uninjured leg was. After making room, Olivia crawled onto the bed and sat flush against Lincoln, relaxing against him when he put his arm around her.

Olivia placed Henry on both of their laps and Henry seemed to understand he was receiving attention, so quieted down. "You're definitely sneaky," Olivia said to Henry, who sniffled a little.

"Naw, he's not sneaky... he's a Dunham, he just craves _everyone's_ attention," Lincoln teased.

Olivia grinned and slapped him on the chest playfully, glad her hand wasn't injured anymore. "I do _not_ crave everyone's attention!" She cried in mock-offense.

"No... just mine," Lincoln smirked smugly.

"Presumptuous much?" Olivia snickered, leaning her head against his chest as she scooted closer. She shut her eyes momentarily, nuzzling him as she breathed in his comforting scent.

"Maybe..." Lincoln admitted, holding Olivia closer. The two were just content to be in each others' arms for now. The two looked down at the now silent baby and shared a mutual look of affection for him. Henry grinned back at them, happy that his _parents _were giving him attention and latched on to both of them.

"I think he thinks you're his father..." Olivia mentioned quietly.

"Yeah?" Lincoln looked over at her, hope once again stirring within him.

"Yeah..." she smiled, glancing up at him. "It'd be bad to disappoint him, wouldn't it?" she asked.

"Yes it would!" Lincoln laughed, feeling joy erupt within him. Henry tugged on both of their shirts, smiling up at both of them. Lincoln and Olivia shared another mutual look of fondness at the child in their arms, feeling more than ever like they were, _both_ of them, Henry's parents. "I'm going to have to leave soon," Lincoln reminded her. Olivia nodded in understanding, knowing that Lincoln would have a _lot _of work to do. She should probably let her mom know she and Henry were okay and explain everything that had happened... her poor mother, she hadn't even been aware of how close she was to losing both her daughter and her grandson to a madman, was she?

The though of death seemed to remind Olivia of another time she almost died. When Lincoln had again been there for her, comforted her, held her... and revealed his feelings for her. "Lincoln... I..." she bit her lip. Why was it so damn hard to say? Three little words. She told Frank the second week they were dating for Christ sake. Lincoln and she were friends for more than two years! It didn't make any sense!

"You don't have to say it, I understand," Lincoln told her, pulling her tighter against him. For now, she didn't, he understood what she was trying to say and her actions spoke louder to him than words... he knew that one day she would be able to say it and was content to wait.

Olivia, on the other hand, groaned inwardly, sometimes hating it when Lincoln was so understanding. She _wanted_ to say it to him! She _needed _to say it to him! She DID love him! She loved him! She was IN LOVE with him! She almost laughed hysterically at how easy it was to admit it to herself now. But her tongue got tangled every time she tried to admit it to him! Was it really that strange? Admitting her love for him? For Lincoln Lee? Sure, it was a _little_ odd... they had always been buddies, and he was her commanding officer, but that shouldn't matter! It didn't. So why couldn't she just say it?

Maybe she was too tired right now, too distressed over everything that happened to her. Maybe she was afraid? No, she knew what was in her heart, knew she wanted to tell him... but maybe here in the infirmary after going through such trauma, it was not the right time. Soon, she would tell him soon. She would tell him if it killed her! Unfortunately, their work would steal them away from each other before Olivia would have a chance. Life and responsibility sucked sometimes.

_TBC_...

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><p><strong>End AN**: Hahaha Oh Henry, you clever, clever boy... you're gunna make one awesome Fringe agent when you're all grown up XD. Okay everyone, say it with me, "_FINALLY_!" right? I mean, for crying out loud, even I was getting antsy with all their tension and avoidance D: lol... and Olivia STILL hasn't admitted her damn feeling to him! Gah! I COULD end this story here... but don't worry, I'm not going to lol. Wow, talk about a hot and heavy make-out session lol buh! If only Henry hadn't interrupted! Lol j/k.

Shout-Outs:

**Fallen Heart**: I'm glad you liked the action, I'm a little rusty! I tried to write Olivia as she is in the show, tough, but still a woman, ya know? Lincoln always "saves the day" XD

**katiekayx**: Maybe they will, and maybe they won't... lol at least they _expressed _their feelings here, right? XD


	10. Chapter 10

**Substitute**

**A/N**: As cheesy as it is, when I think of Alt!livia and Red!Lincoln now, the song "Things Can Only Get Better" by Howard Jones pops into my head... it was the song that was stuck in my head, after listening to it over the radio at my job, when I saw Bloodline... so it kinda stuck lol.

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><p>It had been two days since the whole ordeal. While Lincoln took up his position as Chief and wrote reports, spoke to the higher-ups, and cleaned up the mess that former Secretary had made - <em>and got promoted to Colonel<em>, - the world slowly returned to "normal", or as normal as could be in their world anyway. A new Secretary of defense would have to be chosen. Though he had used his influences to avoid the death penalty, Walter Bishop wasn't leaving his little cell in Alcatraz anytime soon. Being charged with trying to orchestrate the destruction countless people and only God knew what other living creatures, could land a man in quite a big prison. Of course, the public still had no idea the _exact _reason the former Secretary was imprisoned, but attempt at mass genocide was enough to convince most people. The conspiracy theorists still had a field-day.

Marilyn has practically taken up permanent residency in her daughter's apartment in the meantime. Apparently the theft of her son and threat to use him to destroy another universe, killing him in the process, made Olivia a little paranoid. Of course, this would pass in time, most of it, but right now she was in shambles. While Lincoln did his best to be with her, coming over to visit as often as he possibly could, like he had done before, he had too much work keeping him away from her right now.

His absence from Olivia and Henry was also starting to drive him nuts, and kept everyone around him on edge.

Charlie would visit as often as he could as well, which was quite a lot. Olivia was grateful for all the support she was getting, including a personal apology from the President himself. It helped her feel a little more secure about the world, knowing there were still good people in it. Not for the first time did Olivia think of the other universe, hoping they were doing okay and smiling in wonder at how empathetic she had gotten the past couple days. Last week she would have laughed in your face if you asked her if she cared about the other universe. But now she did, she really did. Did it really take the threat of imminent destruction and tragedy to inspire the good in people? What a shame.

A knock on the door snapped Olivia out of her thoughts. She glanced down at her snoozing baby boy and stood from her kneeling position by his crib. Who could be visiting this early in the morning? As she walked to the door she glanced at her watch and blinked in surprise... had she really been in that deep a thought for that long? "Hey there, Livie!" Charlie greeted cheerfully when Olivia opened the door. He was not alone. Lincoln was of course with him and... was that agent Farnsworth?

"Uh – hey!" Olivia replied, still surprised. "What are the three of you doing here?" she asked curiously.

"Good morning ma'am. Forgive me if I'm intruding..." Astrid began.

"You're not! I was just a little surprised," Olivia replied with a smile.

"Agent Farnsworth here-" Lincoln began.

"Astrid," Olivia corrected with a smile.

"Astrid, was concerned about you... so we had her tag along to help us check up on you," he finished.

"That's really nice," Olivia grinned, smiling at Astrid. She was a little annoyed about the whole checking up on deal, but she appreciated that they cared for her and wanted her to be happy. "I'm doing just fine, and so is Henry, thank you for your concern," she said.

"Not at all, Ma'am-"

"Olivia," Olivia corrected. Astrid smiled a little bashfully but nodded in understanding.

"It was no problem _Olivia_, I wish you and your son the best," Astrid nodded.

"Thank you, same goes for you," Olivia continued to grin.

"Well, I need to get back, _some _of us still have work to do..." Astrid said, surprising the males by teasing them. She was usually so withdrawn and professional, so this was definitely different... good different but different all the same.

"Alright," Olivia laughed, seeing her off. Olivia turned to the two males and smiled. "So? Are you two just gunna stand out there all day?"

"Maybe, depends on if our lovely host will let us in," Lincoln gave her his "charming" smile, making her snicker.

"Put that away, Linc, you'll put an eye out," Olivia teased, referring to his smile.

"What?" Lincoln continued to smile. "This?" he flashed his pearly whites.

"Yep, that," Olivia nodded. That man wielded that smile like a weapon. She may not "swoon" like typical women who were on the receiving end of one of them, but she was still a woman and it still affected her. She'd never let _him _know that though, he'd use it to his advantage and she couldn't have that. "I _suppose_ I can let you guys in..." she said in mock-resignation and let them pass.

Charlie was no fool, he could tell that they only really had eyes for each other... no matter how outrageous his stories got. So... after doing most of the talking and not breaking through the obvious distraction his two buddies both had, he decided to wisely back out of the room and give them space. "Hey, I'm gunna head out, I'll see you guys later," he said, grabbing his keys and heading out.

"See you Charlie," Olivia called. Lincoln and Olivia stood silently for a moment.

"So... where's Henry? Is he doing okay?" Lincoln asked curiously.

"I finally got him to sleep actually," Olivia answered.

"It's a good thing he sleeps like a log, or your snarky laughter might wake him up..." Lincoln dodged a whack across the head. "I mean, your beautiful wonderful candy-to-the-ears laughter..." he wisely corrected himself, his smile still playful.

"That's better," Olivia laughed. They hadn't noticed how close they were to each other until Lincoln took a step toward her and his smile softened.

"'Liv, you're welcome to come back to work as soon as you feel ready... but don't rush into it, okay? Be sure you have someone that you trust watch Henry..." Lincoln said, sobering a little.

"I will," Olivia nodded, taking a step closer as well. "Give me some time to settle again, relax a bit from all of this crazy crap, and I'll be ready... my mom already offered to watch Henry while I'm at work," Olivia watched Lincoln step closer still.

"Are you okay? I mean, really okay?" he suddenly asked, his eyes searching her's.

"I am now... but I might need some help now and again," Olivia admitted softly.

"I'll be here any time you need me, I'll always be here for you..." Lincoln replied just as softly, moving further still, barely leaving a gap between them now. Olivia closed her eyes and leaned into his touch as he drew his hand over her cheek, caressing his thumb over her cheekbone. "'Liv..." he sighed and relaxed when she moved to embrace him. "I love you, Olivia..." he said into her ear, his rough cheek tickling her own as he pulled her closer, nuzzling her. "What was that?" Lincoln whispered, not really understanding her mumble against his chest.

Olivia opened her eyes and pulled slightly back to look at him. She stood silently for a moment and simply gazed up at his handsome face, moving her fingers to caress his jaw. "I said I love you too, Lincoln Lee," she finally repeated, her voice a little stronger now. "I _love _you," she said again, just to make sure he heard her. Lincoln couldn't stop the shit-eating grin that spread across his face, his eyes lighting up. She said it! She said it! He couldn't believe it!

"'Liv..." he began, a little choked up, leaning a little bit toward her. He was still grinning.

"Hmm?" Olivia pondered, distracted by his intoxicating closeness. He smelled of cologne, leather, and something that was uniquely him. It made her dizzy - but in a good way.

"Can I kiss you?" He asked softly. He was so close she could almost count the little hairs from his five-o-cloak shadow that graced his jaw.

"I dunno, can you?" Olivia teased, her eyes trained on his lips as their faces inched closer.

"I'm gunna kiss you," Lincoln whispered, moving closer still. Permission be damned.

"Okay..." Was all Olivia could manage to say before their mouths joined. She wrapped her arms around him, feeling his wrap around her waist and pull her flush against him. The two once again lost themselves, drowning in bliss and never wanting to be rescued. Sweet, sweet oxygen deprivation... this was the best kind, the kind that consumed you and made the world shrink away, until it was nothing but you and the jaw muscles of the one you were kissing you put to work. And _goodness_ did that man know how to work those muscles.

The week went by as it always had, with the addition of Olivia and Lincoln being a whole lot closer that is, but unfortunately, working in Fringe Division didn't leave to many days free. There was _always _work to do, even if there wasn't a Fringe Event. Lincoln and Olivia only managed to be together for a few hours a day, most of the time it being at work, but for now, just being able to give each other looks across the room, "accidental" touches, and sneaking kisses when no one was looking was enough, though, there was always the lingering feeling of wanting more. She hadn't thought she'd feel the same for him, after all, they knew each other _how _long and never went beyond just friends? Now this? She thought it'd be a fling, something they - or _she, _at least - would get over after some time but... the feelings just grew stronger each day.

Olivia had been hesitant to come back to work at first, two weeks and a little more after everything that happened. She was worried for her son, worried about leaving him, even if he was with his grandmother, but eventually decided he was safe for the time-being... until someone took up Walter Bishop's efforts that was. As long as she had the support she did, she felt relatively safe in the knowledge that she had a whole host of people ready and willing to help in a moment's time.

While Olivia busied herself with work, trying to ease herself back into it, Charlie went over and leaned against her desk, giving her a mischievous look. "What?" she asked a little cautiously, glancing up at him. He had that look again.

"So, what's it like dating the boss?" Charlie teased, trying to make it hard on Olivia, though it didn't work anymore. Said agent leaned back in her seat and smirked at her partner.

"It has it's advantages..." she chuckled. Neither of them heard Lincoln as he approached them.

"So you're just taking advantage of me? I'm wounded..." The two turned to see said boss strutting toward them, his usual bravado back in place.

"Oh you love it," Olivia grinned, secretly admiring him as he drew closer. Without her self-imposed restrictions toward men after Frank left her, and in particular Lincoln, she allowed herself to study him in a not so innocent sense.

"Hmm, you're right, I _do _love it when you _take advantage_ of me..." Lincoln agreed lewdly. While Charlie groaned in disgust, hearing more than he _ever _wanted to, Olivia laughed full-heartedly.

"What was that?" Olivia asked when Charlie grunted something.

"I said, _finally_!" He repeated. When his two friends looked at him strangely, he elaborated. "I've been sitting here watching you two walk around each other, when you obviously liked each other, since the day you two met!" Could he be serious? Had they really been that way? Had they had feelings for each other way back then and only just realized it?

"Agent Lee? Sir, I have a report that needs your attention, something you asked about?" A camouflaged Fringe officer said as he stood by. Lincoln turned and followed him to his desk. While Lincoln spoke to the other agent, Charlie leaned over again, now curious just how serious his two friends were about each other.

"So 'Liv, just where do you stand with Lincoln now? You know he's crazy about you, right?" Charlie asked curiously. In reality, he was just concerned that his two best buddies weren't happy or they were having problems or something... he wanted them to be happy.

"Wouldn't _you_ like to know?" Olivia teased. Charlie made a face.

"If it's anything like _that_, then no, I wouldn't," he bit back with a smirk.

"Oh shut up," Olivia punched him playfully. "I know Charlie, believe me, I know how he feels about me and... I think I feel exactly the same," she smiled. No, she didn't _think _she felt the same, she now knew she did.

"That's good," Charlie nodded, feeling relieved.

"Actually, we've just had a few... dates... that's about it," Olivia explained, still feeling a little strange associating Lincoln and herself with the word "date" or anything remotely related... then again, she recently found out how much she _liked _this type of "strange", at least, as long as it was Lincoln.

Meanwhile, Lincoln read the report and frowned at its contents. They really hadn't found anything yet? He grunted in annoyance and walked over to Astrid, who was busy with her usual calculations. "Agent?" he began, grabbing her attention.

"What can I do for you, Colonel?" she asked respectfully. For a moment Lincoln had to stop himself from glancing around for Broyles, before remembering that he had been promoted by the President himself and that he really was in charge of all of Fringe Division now.

"You haven't found _anything_?" He asked her.

"No sir, but we _do _have some leads. We'll be able to find the device the former Secretary of Defense used but we need a little more time, sir. When I sent the team you requested back down to retrieve the machines the Former Secretary was using before his incarceration, we didn't find anything substantial, but we found evidence that it had been moved. There is a strong probability that it could have been someone on the inside that moved it. I'll look into it further," Astrid explained.

"Understood. Good job, agent," Lincoln smiled. Astrid had always been an amazing agent and felt himself fortunate for having her in Fringe Division.

"Thank you, Colonel," Astrid smiled back hesitantly. Lincoln nodded to her and headed back to his friends, hoping to clear his mind. Sooner or later he would have to let them in on his plans, but for now, he just wanted everyone to relax.

"Yeah, so then he dumps the whole bottle of steak sauce on himself! To top it off, he slips on the puddle he made when he went to get up!" Olivia laughed with Charlie. Lincoln frowned as he walked over, recognizing the story.

"Oh, hey boss... 'Livie's been telling me some interesting stories about your _attempts_ at romance," Charlie grinned, making Olivia snort with laughter beside him. Lincoln hated it but couldn't stop it... he blushed. He glanced over at Olivia and sent her a look that promised her that she was going to get it later, making her smile and bite her lip in that way that drove him crazy.

"At least I _have _some romance in my life," Lincoln smirked.

"Ooo, he got you!" Olivia laughed.

"Hey, Marilyn is here," Charlie muttered, looking across the hall to the elderly woman being escorted by a guard. Clearly, he was avoiding the subject. Unfortunately, things weren't really working out very well for him and Monna Foster.

"Oh! She has Henry! It's about time for me to take care of my other man," Olivia winked at the men as she got up and backed away from them. "I'll catch you boys later," she smiled. Olivia turned and greeted her mom cheerfully, a bounce in her step.

"Hello, honey," Marilyn greeted, kissing her daughter's cheek. "You seem pretty happy today," she observed with a delighted smile.

"I guess I am!" Olivia grinned back, walking backwards. "I have a great job, awesome friends, a wonderful mother, the best son a mother could ask for, and an amazing boyfriend," she shrugged, still grinning away like a fool. The two walked over to one of the quiet offices, where Henry sat in his carrier, being watched carefully by an agent Lincoln had chosen personally for precisely this sort of thing.

"I'm so happy you feel that way, honey!" Marilyn grinned back. Olivia greeted her son enthusiastically, who laughed and gurgled back happily. After Olivia fed him, she sat with him on a chair, playing with him for a bit while chatting with her mother. "It's so nice of your _commanding officer_ to let you leave like this to spend time with and feed Henry..." Marilyn smiled, knowing her daughter's feelings for said man very well. Olivia tried very hard not to blush and nodded in agreement.

"Lincoln is... amazing," Olivia shrugged, not really knowing exactly what to label her boyfriend as. That seemed to sum him up pretty well though, for now, until she could figure out a better word. Right now, all was awesome with the world.

_TBC_...

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><p><strong>End AN**: Sorry about the time gap... if this story has any popularity or enough people ask for it, I may write more on it, like a series of one-shots or moments and such or something. Oh, in this universe apparently Alcatraz is still functional lol... No, this is not an epilogue, although it might appear to be so. There is more.

Shout-Outs:

**Fallen Heart**: Lol isn't that a good thing? I think I love Henry lol. I'm glad you like it and you're welcome lol :P

**katiekayx**: But they already kissed though D: in chapter 7 I think... or 6? I forget which. Although, this is their first make-out session XD


	11. Chapter 11

**Substitute**

**A/N**: I hope ya'll like "slice of life" chapters, because you're getting one! Enjoy?

Warning: This isn't really much of a warning, Lincoln is just a _little_ naughty in this chapter

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><p>It had been a long, trying two days. They had two Fringe Events in a row but they managed to solve them both rather quickly in that time, quicker than normally. Maybe it was the fact that the cases weren't as big as, let's say, the giant hybrid human-host-using, egg-laying spider that seemed to have a crush on poor Charlie, half a year ago, or the sheep-host-using-eating-their-way-out-of-humans mad-scientist bug-creator a couple months ago... why was it always bugs? Maybe it was just the fact that <em>some <em>people wanted to spent actual "quality" time with each other, not just on missions.

"So I was thinking," Olivia began that evening as she shut her computer down, after _finally _wrapping up the last Fringe Event case they had to deal with.

"What about?" Lincoln queried. He had walked over to mess with her and Charlie. Charlie had left a few minutes ago to get "a snack for the road" while Lincoln and Olivia joked about him having more than one mouth to feed. He had just huffed and walked off, leaving them laughing while he secretly smiled to himself, finding it more amusing than he let them know.

"How'd you like to have breakfast at my place tomorrow?" She asked him, watching several emotions filter through his eyes. Finally, his emotions settled on one and he grinned playfully.

"Oh? Are you inviting me to spend the night?" he asked, wagging his eyebrows suggestively.

"Hmm, I dunno, if you play your cards right, one day I just might..." Olivia smirked back. It certainly wasn't a bad thought. During the week they had been seeing each other she had been getting closer to Lincoln, finding things about him that she never knew, and he about her, but the more time she spent with him, the more she began to realize that she had been missing out. Now, now she couldn't imagine _not _being with Lincoln. More in the relationship was _definitely _a nice thought.

"I can't wait," Lincoln grinned wolfishly, leaning over her desk.

And that was how Charlie found them, moments later. He cleared his throat and gave them an arched eyebrow. They jumped slightly but didn't move away from their positions, just looked back at him with a mutual half-annoyed look. Charlie rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. "Hey, I'm planning on heading to the bar before home, either of you want to join me?" he asked curiously.

"No can-do, buddy, I've got way too much work and emails to write," Lincoln answered seriously. Being the only leader of Fringe Division until they could find another Secretary of Defense with better leadership skills than his own, kept him in pretty tight communication with the rest of the leaders of the government, including the President.

"How 'bout you, 'Liv? Wanna join me?" Charlie looked over at Olivia who had just finished packing her things.

"Sorry, Charlie... I've got a date with my little man at home," she told him. Leave her son with her grandma at home while she went out with Charlie and avoided alcohol? She didn't think so. "No Lincoln, my _other 'little' _man..." Olivia teased, watching in great amusement as a surprised and slightly affronted look crossed his face.

"Oh I'll show _you _'little'..." he teased back, receiving a wink from Olivia and another disgruntled sound from Charlie.

"I see... I see how it is..." Charlie muttered, pretending to be stricken and trying to ignore his perverted friends' antics.

"How 'bout you ask 'bug-girl'? Olivia grinned.

"Her name is Monna," Charlie corrected, straightening his posture defensively. "And maybe I will," he retorted. Maybe things weren't going too well between them at the moment, but maybe she wouldn't mind having a drink with him?

"Take it easy," Olivia laughed. "Well, I wish you two the best and I hope she doesn't _bug _you too much..." she grinned cheekily. While Lincoln laughed Charlie merely rolled his eyes. "I better go, see you later Charlie, -you, come with me," she said, turning to Lincoln and literally tugging him by the front of his shirt to a more secluded area. While most people had already gone home, they still didn't want to risk it... it wasn't like it was _wrong _for them to be dating, they just didn't want it to look like Lincoln was displaying favoritism among his "underlings".

Lincoln shrugged at Charlie with a mock-helpless look as he let himself get dragged off. Charlie shook his head, though with a little smile at his friends' antics, and went off with his bag of pretzels to the garage. "We gotta stop meeting like this," Lincoln said playfully, letting Olivia take the lead and pull him into a fiery kiss.

"You're right," she ran her hand through his already messy hair as she slanted their lips. "This has got to stop," Olivia said just as playfully, in between kisses. Lincoln whirled them around, pressing Olivia against the wall and pulling her tighter against his body. Their breaths came out in rasps, not able to keep their hands off each other. The kiss slowed but the passion they felt for each other still burned within them, slowly consuming them. At times like these, they wished they had more time alone. "Don't stay up too late, _Colonel_..." Olivia said after forcibly pulling herself away. She kissed him lightly one last time, saying she'd see him in the morning, and slipped out of his hold.

"Say goodnight to the little Dunham for me," Lincoln called to her, casually leaning against the wall as he watched her leave.

"I will!" Olivia promised as she jogged over to the garage. She was eager to see her son again but if she looked back at him now, his clothes rumpled, hair a mess, lips swollen, and leaning against the wall in that sexy way she knew he was, she'd _never _leave. She could feel his eyes on her but she would damned if she looked back and allowed him to trap her! Olivia breathed a sigh of relief – and a little bit of frustration – when she exited the building, making her way to her car.

The drive to her mom's house wasn't long and before she knew it, she was greeted by a tired but happy Marilyn with a sleeping Henry in her arms. Olivia again felt bad about dumping her son on her mom like that but was eternally grateful for having her help. She accepted her son and his supply bag, wished her mother a good night, and continued on her way home, every once in a while glancing lovingly at her still sleeping son. Once she got home, she carefully carried Henry in, not wanting to wake him, and managed to get in with everything she had in her arms _and _reset the security alarm without making too much noise. She set his bag and her's down and carried her son to his crib, gently laying him down and tucking him in.

"Did you have a good day today, baby?" She cooed softly, moving her hand down his face tenderly. Henry kicked in his sleep but settled right away, turning his face toward her. Olivia smiled adoringly and knelt by his crib, just watching him. She knelt there for what seemed like hours before she realized how sore she felt from the awkward position. She decided sleep was a good idea before Henry woke her up again, so she went to bed.

Luckily, it hadn't taken Olivia long to fall asleep. She had to admit to herself that she was feeling a little more secure now that Lincoln had personally installed a new security system in her apartment – even though she firmly told him that it wasn't necessary, - he wouldn't take any chances though. So, as it always did, night slipped into day, even if Olivia had been woken up every two hours on the dot. It was early in the morning when the silence in the apartment was broken, though softly.

Olivia's apartment door opened quietly. Lincoln knew he was early, but this wasn't the first time he did this. Olivia had given him an apartment key not long after they had started dating. At first Olivia had been surprised and had whipped her weapon out at him, making him jump and put his hands up, much like he had when the other Olivia had done the same. The only thing Olivia scolded him about was making such a racket coming into the apartment and waking her up... so he changed his tactics and used covert-ops to sneak into her apartment from then on.

He reset the alarm and placed his laptop carrier down quietly. He moved through the apartment like a ghost, using his training to aid him, and peeked into Henry's room. He did this always, every time he visited; he would make sure Henry was there and safe. He crept over to the boy's crib and peered down, noticing that the boy was awake and looking about. The boy noticed him and immediately began giggling, grinning up at him, happy to see him. Lincoln smiled reached down, moving to pick him up.

"Shh, you'll wake your mother up... you know how she is when she doesn't get her beauty-sleep," Lincoln grinned at his own little joke, bouncing the still giggling child in his arms. Olivia was awake, even for as early as it was, she knew that Lincoln would be visiting and wanted to catch him this time... unfortunately, she had forgotten just how good he was of being silent. When she heard him speaking softly to her son, she crept out of bed and sneaked over, peeking inside the room. She watched Lincoln play with Henry, seeing the adoring look in both of their eyes and feeling her heart swell. She cleared her throat, making her presence known to the two most important males in her life.

Lincoln was startled by Olivia's sudden appearance. Olivia noted that instead of dropping the boy, like she figured most might have, Lincoln pulled him closer to his chest. It just went to show how protective he was of the child. "'Liv? What are you doing up so early?" he asked her after he relaxed.

Olivia shrugged and smiled. "What would you like for breakfast?" she asked him.

"I'll eat whatever you make," Lincoln smiled back as he placed Henry down.

"Now I _know_ you're sucking up," Olivia teased as she lead him to the kitchen.

"There's plenty to _suck up _in this relationship..." Lincoln grinned.

"Oh you're nasty," Olivia laughed and reached over to grab things from the fridge. She could feel him behind her and smiled when he drew his fingers along her back and over her waist. "Careful hot-shot, or you're not eating..." she playfully warned him as she pulled back and kicked the fridge shut.

"Maybe I just want _you _for breakfast..." he smirked, pinning her to the fridge. Oh how she'd like to take him up on his offer... the look he was giving her was enough to make any woman's knees buckle, but, again, she wasn't like most women. She was stronger than that. She was, damnit! Olivia shook her head and ducked under his arms. She wasn't quick enough to dodge him when he suddenly pulled her into a searing kiss, though.

After kissing him for what seemed to be hours and _almost _forgetting breakfast, she pushed him into a seat at the table. "Behave," she told him.

"Yes ma'am!" Lincoln smirked.

Olivia prepared what she had for breakfast, which, thanks to her mother who was tired of seeing nothing really nutritional in her daughter's fridge, was quite a lot. They sat and ate a hearty meal of eggs, bacon, toast, and orange juice... though they both wished they had some coffee, which was too rare nowadays. After breakfast, the two sat at the table and talked, just talked, nothing more, nothing less. They spoke about anything and everything until the phone rang.

Olivia got up from the table and went to answer her phone. "Dunham," she said, not bothering to check the caller-ID.

"_Hello, honey! I didn't wake you, did I?"_ Marilyn asked.

"Hi mom. No, I was already up... having breakfast with Lincoln," Olivia explained.

"_Having... did you and he...?" _Marilyn trailed off.

"No, no, ...not yet anyway," Olivia smiled, glancing over to where Lincoln was cleaning up. How sweet. He was _definitely _sucking up to her... she wondered what he had up his sleeves.

"_Oh, alright, it's none of my business anyway, I just hope the two of you use protection..."_

"MOM..." Olivia sighed.

"_I'm sorry honey." _No she wasn't. _"I called to ask if you know where I left my remote for the tv?"_ Marilyn asked. By then, Lincoln had finished rinsing and putting the dishes in the dishwasher and had walked over.

"I don't know mom, I haven't exactly spent enough time at the house to know where you put things..." Olivia explained, now feeling Lincoln directly behind her. What was he doing? He was distracting.

"_I was wondering if maybe Henry had accidentally knocked it into his bag? He was doing all kinds of cute kicking things with his feet and I must have not noticed if it fell... could you check for me please?"_

"Let me see, hold on a sec," Olivia said, swatting Lincoln playfully and peeking into her son's bag, where it sat nearby. She found the controller, and told her mother so. By then Lincoln had begun rubbing his hands up and down her arms, distracting her further and making her shiver a little. "Just use the buttons on the tv for now, I'll drop it off later," Olivia told her, trying to keep her voice steady.

"_Alright, thank you sweetie,"_ Marilyn said and the connection was cut. Olivia turned around, over to where Lincoln was standing very near to her. Lincoln smiled innocently and leaned forward, caging Olivia between the counter and his body, with his arms on either side of her. Olivia smiled back and reached up, trailing her hand up his chest and to his neck. Neither knew who leaned over first but they didn't care, all they knew was that in seconds they had their hands on each other and were kissing deeply.

The stumbled back, blindly heading over to the closest room, Olivia's room. They fell upon the bed, fumbling with buckles, shirts, frantically, desperately trying to feel each others' heated skin against their own bodies. Just as they began to get lost in the kiss, and dive head first into sensation, into lust, love and pleasure, they heard the now familiar cry of a baby. They reluctantly stopped, slumping against the bed and each other in defeat, laughing at the absurdity of it all. "I should probably..." They were still grinning. They may have been interrupted, but they weren't about to start complaining, they wouldn't change this for the world.

"No, you relax, I'll get him," Lincoln offered.

"When did you become so sweet?" Olivia asked, resting herself on her elbows as she peered up at him. The sun shown softly on his lean body, giving him a glow over his exposed arms and broad back as he turned to sit on the edge of the bed. The amber light over his athletic physique gave him the impression of a Greek god... not that she'd ever tell him that, his ego was big enough. All the same, she bit her lip as she watched him.

"I'm a sweet guy!" He answered playfully turning his head to give her a lazy smile.

"Sometimes..." She agreed teasingly.

"Always!" Another toothy grin. He sat on the bed, pulling his pants back up and smiling at the feeling of her wandering fingers along his neck, shoulder, back... "Play nice..." he warned her, turning his dazzling green eyes back to smile at her.

"Or what? You gunna pull rank? I just love it when you take charge..." Olivia teased. Actually, she did like it when he got all serious and boss-like, it gave her an odd thrill. She blinked then with the realization that she kind of always did.

"If you put it that way, I just might... if I knew you liked it when I took charge, I'd have been ordering you around more often," Lincoln laughed. That was, of course, not what she meant, and he knew it, but he enjoyed the look of fond annoyance that crossed her face.

"Not what I meant," she retorted.

"Oh I know," he continued to snicker. "I'll be right back," he smiled and slipped out. "Heeey buddy, don't cry... I'm the delivery-man, gunna take you to your mom now for some breakfast," Lincoln told Henry as he lifted him up. Henry didn't look too convinced. Lincoln grinned at the child in his arms and kissed his little head as he pulled him closer to him. "See? There's mom now..." he continued to speak to Henry. "If you're charming, she'll feed you... believe me, I have experience with that," he said, grinning over at Olivia.

Olivia smiled back in amusement. "Don't listen to him, Henry... he only _thinks _he's charming," she said playfully, making room for Lincoln to sit next to her on the bed.

"See that, Henry? That there is called _denial..._" Lincoln laughed.

"Yeah, that works both ways, lover-boy," Olivia teased. Henry, at this point, hadn't exactly stopped crying, but now had that uncertain look in his face. It almost looked like he couldn't decide who to believe... but he was still just a couple weeks old baby.

"Didn't you just feed him before breakfast?" Lincoln asked after they settled.

"I did, but it was a while ago. It was," she glanced at the clock and raised an eyebrow. "That was two hours ago..." she told him. Had they really been goofing around for that long? Maybe that saying was right, time flew when you were having fun...

"Time flies..." he grinned, seemingly reading her thoughts. He was good at that.

Olivia sat on the bed, carefully moving her baby to be fed and pulling her little blanket over them. Lincoln sat next to them, watching her do this. Olivia noted that he didn't blush nor look away this time, but he didn't have a lewd expression either... he was more focused on the baby than anything else, though he couldn't really see him. Again, while maybe it might have in the past, it didn't feel weird at all to her that he watched them like a father would watch his wife and child, in fact, it felt perfect. "'Liv?" he began, interrupting her musing.

"Yeah?" she asked curiously.

"Will you go to dinner with me tonight, after work? Just you and me?" he asked her, his eyes now trained on her's. He cared deeply for Henry and loved spending time with him, but he craved spending alone-time with Olivia as well. He just hoped there wasn't a sudden Fringe Event tonight...

Olivia smiled and nodded in agreement. "I'd love to," she told him. What could the night hold for them? The possibilities were endless. They only knew they would make the most of it.

_TBC_...

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><p><strong>End AN**: Things are coming along nicely for the couple! I wonder what travesty will pull them away from each other this time? HAHAHA! Ehem, kidding? Maybe... I dunno, lol, you'll just have to wait and see!

Shout-Outs:

**katiekayx**: It's true, they're happy and awesome and I love them XD I can't wait for more either! Lol

**Fallen Heart**: Omg me too! I'm happy I got you addicted, it means I'm doing something right lol.


	12. Chapter 12

**Substitute**

**A/N**: I think this story is missing _one of those _chapters_. _So here it is!

**Warning**: This is a real warning this time. This chapter is just a _little_ bit spicy...

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><p>The day at work seemed to drag on, at least, it did for Lincoln and Olivia who were more interested in the evening. Honestly, where was a Fringe Event when one was wanted? Finally, after the boring day ended, the people who <em>could <em>began to pack up and go home. Olivia was one such person, closing her computer down and getting her things. Charlie leaned back against his chair, watching her with a raised eyebrow. Lincoln had been practically humming today and now Olivia looked...

"What's with you?" Charlie questioned her.

"Hm? What?" Olivia looked up.

"Any special reason why you're in such a good mood?" He asked curiously. Olivia merely smiled. "Come on, what's up? This has something to do with Lincoln, doesn't it?" he said, spot on.

"He made a reservation for us at a restaurant at Pimlico," she told him. Pimlico was the place where they had the fanciest, nicest places.

"Is that so?" Charlie grinned. "Well, 'hope you two have a good time."

"Thanks Charlie, we will!" Olivia grinned back. Olivia glanced up in Lincoln's office, seeing him furiously working on his computer, probably trying to wrap things up quickly. He was so focused he hadn't noticed her walk over and stand at his door. "Linc," she said, making her presence known.

"Oh, hey 'Liv," Lincoln smiled up at her, _always_ happy to see her.

"I'll see you tonight, I'm gunna head home," she told him.

"Alright, see you soon," he nodded. Olivia glanced around, making sure they weren't being watched, and went to lean over his desk, kissing his cheek.

"Hey, you shaved?" She raised an eyebrow. He must have cleaned up when he got back to work that morning.

"Yep," he smiled.

"Aww, I kinda liked that fuzzy beard thing you had going on..." she grinned. While it tickled her when they kissed, she couldn't deny he looked roguish and sexy with it as well... though he still did with or without it anyway, it gave him that just-woke-up look, especially with his short, messy hair.

"Oh? Well then I'll hide my razor somewhere," he liked pleasing her, so he would go through the pains of keeping his little shadow trimmed for her. The things you do for love.

"See you later," Olivia smiled, shaking her head in amusement as she left. It was about an hour later when Lincoln showed up at the door, dressed to kill. "You look sharp. Going on a hot date?" Olivia asked teasingly.

"I'll let you know how _hot_ the date is once it's over," Lincoln bobbed his eyebrows.

"You're pretty confident it'll go any further than food," Olivia smirked. She was so grateful of her mother agreeing to watch Henry tonight. She hated leaving Henry, especially after everything that happened, but her mother wouldn't let her change her mind about this, insisting she have a night out with her boyfriend, no matter _how _late that "night out" ended... or early. Olivia had blushed at the implication a little but thanked her mother anyway.

"Oh I'm very confident there will at _least_ be kissing," he smiled that damn charming smile again.

"Is that so? So who is this lucky woman you're taking out?" She asked as she moved closer to him, breathing in his aftershave and shivering pleasantly.

"Someone beautiful, hilarious, and perfect..." Lincoln said, his lips stretching attractively with his wide grin.

"Look at you, Mr. Suave..." Olivia teased, leaning in to kiss him. Lincoln smiled into the kiss, moving his hand down her back, along her black dress. "Careful, leave some of that for later," Olivia winked, catching his hand from wandering further down. Oh he just hoped she wasn't joking about that! The two made their way out and as they walked, Olivia stole secretive, appreciative glances at Lincoln, who chose to wear a dark blue button-up shirt – with the first two buttons left unbuttoned, revealing a little chest-hair that peeked through - black slacks, and his only black dress shoes. If she had known he could look this alluring, she would have gone on a date with him long ago.

The drive to the restaurant was in comfortable silence. Before they knew it, they had arrived and stepped out of the car. Lincoln went over and offered his arm, trying to be the "Mr. Suave", like Olivia had put it. Olivia just grinned at his cheesiness, though she _did _find it charming, and accepted his arm. They went in and Lincoln told the hostess what name they were under. They sat at their table and Olivia agreed to some wine. While she normally didn't like alcohol, this blend of red wine they had was had just the right amount of alcohol flavor and fruity without it being like juice.

Through dinner they talked, teased each other and joked around until they were red in the face. Most of the jokes surrounded poor Charlie though, even if they only meant it fondly. When a song Olivia recognized started playing, she grinned and stood up. They had already eaten so they didn't have a waiter to wait on them, though they hadn't yet paid the bill. "Come on, dance with me!" Olivia said, tugging at Lincoln's hand. It kind of reminded her of her time with Peter... but then, Peter had been reluctant, Lincoln on the other hand hopped out of his seat and spun her around before pulling her into his arms.

Lincoln had this way about him that made Olivia's mind focus solely on him. Then again, that wasn't very difficult. While she no longer pined for Peter, as little as that was anyway, she knew she had to eventually and somehow let him know about his son, but her heart, it belonged to Lincoln Lee. The fast-pace of the music was different than the type of music you'd normally hear in a fancy restaurant, then again, this was one of those modern, youth-inspired places. It had a dance floor and everything.

While they danced the room felt like it started to heat up a little, or maybe it was the fact that they were so close to each other that they could feel the elevated heat coming off each other in waves. They danced and laughed, moving with the beat and focusing on each other. The other people around them was nothing but a blur, the music more like background sound than anything else. They eyes locked on each other and their lips met, as if attracted to each other like magnets.

Hands on their bodies, hips swaying, rubbing, breathing heavy... they needed to pay that tab and get out of there quickly. Panting slightly, Lincoln paid for the meal, brushing off Olivia's protests where she had tried to pay for half. The drive back to the apartment was silent again, although this time there was an electrical charge in the air.

As they walked to Olivia's apartment, they could both feel a change in the air. One look at him and Olivia knew what it was he wanted, he'd never do anything without her permission, but she knew the desire was very strong and very there. And so was her's. So, she decided to convince him she was all up for it too, after all, she _had _told him if he played his cards right she'd invite him to spend the night, hadn't she? And he certainly did tonight. After making sure no one was in the hall, Olivia all but threw Lincoln against a wall and devoured his lips. Lincoln was a little surprised for a moment... but only for a moment.

Lincoln responded eagerly, drawing her closer, pushing his fingers through her hair, battling her tongue with his. The couple stumbled down the hall, making desperate attempts to open Olivia's apartment door. When it was finally open, they fumbled inside, their hands still on each other. "I still need to pay you back for embarrassing me," Lincoln reminded her suggestively, his hands hot on her hips, where he held her as she backed them up. He kicked the door shut and watched her pull her jacket off and kick off her shoes.

"Oh?" she asked, playing like she didn't know what he was talking about. She held still as he wrapped his arms around her, taking his time to unzip her dress while slowly moving his fingers along her exposed skin as he did so.

"Mm-hm, you're in for it now..." he grinned, his voice low. This time, Olivia allowed herself to be affected by his sensual smile. Was it even legal to look that attractive? God, had she been blind all this time?

"What ever will I do?" She said with a smile of her own, stepping out of her dress as it pooled at her feet and drew her arms around his neck, pushing her own body against his. "I guess I have no choice," she shrugged, grinning.

"That's right," Lincoln agreed. "As your commanding officer it's my duty to _discipline_ you for insubordination," he teased, leading Olivia into her room after Olivia locked the door and reset the alarm. While Olivia was certainly not the type to be into S&M, the way Lincoln mixed business and pleasure like that made her positively _quiver_ with anticipation.

"Gee, I hope you'll go easy on me, _sir_..." Olivia grinned. Lincoln merely smirked and pulled her into another deep kiss. Their mouths worked almost as quickly as Olivia's fingers did with Lincoln's shirt. Soon, that was off and they had reached Olivia's room. Lincoln kicked off his own shoes while Olivia ran her fingers over his broad physique. For a moment, she had to wonder if this really was a good idea. "Linc, what if I become..." but Olivia trailed off when Lincoln produced a familiar looking packet. "So, you've been waiting for this, have you?" she grinned, relieved.

"Actually, I honestly have no idea where I got it... no, I'm serious!" He laughed at her tolerant look. "I found it in my laptop case this morning, Charlie must have slipped it in when I wasn't looking or something... you know, he's been trying to get me to ask you out for a long time," he commented.

"Has he?" Olivia questioned distractedly, allowing Lincoln to guide her against the bed, crawling backward as he all but straddled her.

"Oh you wouldn't believe how much of a pest he's been..." Lincoln said offhandedly as he crawled over her, holding himself up on his palms though his lower-half was pressed suggestively against her. Olivia's next response was a low groan as Lincoln found the soft spot on Olivia's neck, kissing and sucking on it enthusiastically. The roughness of his beard combined with the seduction of his tongue and lips on her heated skin was starting to drive her crazy... and she wanted more.

"Lincoln..." she sighed, reaching over to unbuckle his pants as he trailed hot, wet kisses down her neck and collar bone. They slipped out of their remaining clothes, exploring each other a little before urgency took control of them.

Breaths mingled and their limbs tangled. Urgency and desire reigned supreme as they lost themselves within each other. Olivia let out a breath, gasping softly as she ran her hand through his hair frantically, pulling him closer while the other hand squeezed his shoulder. She honestly didn't know how long she would be able to last. The things Lincoln could do to her... it was truly unbelievable.

Olivia was again eternally grateful to her mother; if Henry had been there he would have surely been woken up by their cries of pleasure. Who knew this kind of thing, at least with the right partner, could make Olivia Dunham so vocal? Then again, Lincoln wasn't that much quieter. When the lovers fell upon the bed, spent and utterly satisfied, they took their time to kiss and caress each other until they fell asleep from sheer exhaustion in each others' arms.

_TBC_...

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><p><strong>End AN**: It's about damn time! If enough people ask, I might write an M rated one-shot version.

Just so you know, I was listening to "Undress Me Now" by Morcheeba when I was writing the "scandalous" part of the chapter... XD

Shout-Outs:

**Fallen Heart**: Tricked ya! XD. Love flirty!Lincoln :)

**zeusfluff**: I hoped you liked this XD

**katiekayx**: I'm a decent writer, thanks lol.


	13. Chapter 13

**Substitute**

**A/N**: I was listening to Eric Carmen "I wanna hear it from your lips" the other day, and I thought "gee, that sounds kinda like what Lincoln had to go through in my story" XD gawd Olivia, took your time telling Lincoln how you felt, didn't ya?

Go check out my crappy drawing I did of Lincoln! Link to my deviantArt page in my profile! It is titled "Lee" and if ya scrolled down, you should see it as the first drawing in my "Newest Deviations" section. Be kind, I haven't exactly finished it lol.

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><p>The next morning, as always, Lincoln was the first to wake up, being a natural early-riser that he was. He knew exactly where he was and what had happened the night before. A slow smile spread across his lips and he glanced down at the woman still sleeping in his arms. While some men in the force might think it a triumph to get bad-ass Olivia Dunham to sleep with them, Lincoln was <em>not <em>one of those men. What Lincoln felt for this woman was nothing short of true love. Sure, he hadn't exactly been in love with her when they first met, but over the years they've been partners, his feelings grew stronger. He had put those feelings away in the beginning, especially after Olivia rejected him after they kissed the first time, but now he allowed those feelings to surface once more.

'That's it. I am turning into a chick...' he thought, half-amused, half-worried. He wondered if other men felt this way when they were in love. He blinked and looked down when Olivia moved a little closer to him, pushing herself further into his embrace an unknowingly rubbing herself against him. 'Oh, this isn't good...' Lincoln thought, already starting to feel himself respond to her. 'You better wake up soon, 'Liv... or I won't be held responsible for my actions!' he thought in amusement. Luckily, Olivia seemed to hear his thoughts and began to stir in her sleep.

The first think Olivia noticed was that was was _very _comfortable. The next thing she noticed was heat, all around her. This had her pause for a moment, her room was usually kept at a pleasant temperature... though, this heat was pleasant as well. It wasn't the type of heat you'd kick your covers off for and grunt in disgust, quite the opposite. It took her a second more to register that she was being held by someone, another to realize that it felt _very good_. Ah but she knew who that someone was, and blinked up at him. "Good morning," She said with a sleepy smile.

"_Beautiful _morning," Lincoln corrected. Olivia simply smiled and ran her hand over his now once again scruffy jaw affectionately. "You know, this thing can get pretty itchy..." he said with a lopsided smile. Olivia took the hint and scratched his jaw gently, amused by how much he seemed like a cat enjoying being scratched under the chin. While he didn't exactly _purr _like one, his eyes were half-lidded and he leaned into her touch like a cat would. It was both endearing and hilarious.

"You like that?" She asked with an affectionate smile.

"Mm-hmm..." he mumbled. He probably _would_ purr if he could

"You're such a kitten..." she teased him, still caressing his face.

"Mmm... more like a tiger..." he murmured, content to just lay there, enjoying the attention.

"You keep telling yourself that," Olivia grinned. She knew that he had enough ego that these kind of jabs wouldn't really affect him. It was the price that came with _knowing_ that you were attractive, apparently.

"Oh? You don't believe me?" Lincoln suddenly rolled over.

"Lincoln!" Olivia laughed, trying to half-heartedly push him off as he nipped at her. "S-top..." Lincoln was surprised that she would actually _giggle_... something he had never heard from her. "Alright alright you're a tiger," she relented, still laughing.

"You're so beautiful..." he muttered after he had pulled back to look down at her. He took his hand and moved it down her cheek tenderly.

"You're not so bad to look at either," Olivia smiled fondly, taking his face in her hands and pulling him down to kiss her. They took their time kissing and caressing each other this time, things they hadn't done all that much the night before. When things began to heat up a little more, Olivia gently pushed him back, though she didn't really want to. "Come on, we should get ready for work..." she reminded him. Lincoln groaned in frustration, his head dropping slightly.

"Yeah... you're right," he finally, very reluctantly agreed. He pushed off of her and slipped out of bed with her.

"I'm going to take a shower," Olivia mentioned, smiling back at him as she walked slowly toward her bathroom. Oh yes, she was playing that card.

"Mind if I join? You know, so we don't waste water..." Lincoln suggested with a wide grin. Olivia didn't say anything, just smiled as she exited the room, swaying her hips a little for him. Lincoln took that as an invitation and followed her readily, cursing when the eagerness caused him to not see where he was stepping. It was then that he noticed how extensive the trail of clothes they had left was and smirked. He continued on his way, stepping over clothes and shoes – like the one he stepped on. He was on a mission.

Olivia stood in the shower, letting it hit her body and turned the water until it was pleasantly hot. As soon as she began to lather her sponge, she smiled when she heard the shower door open, but didn't turn around. When she felt Lincoln's hands on her, she leaned back, into his touch and against his hard body. While they didn't have the whole morning, they still took their time enjoying a rerun of their previous activities the night before. When the water began to run cold, they knew it was time to finish up and get ready for work.

"Aw, c'mon..." Lincoln complained playfully when they were done.

"Nope, I'm not gunna let you 'dry' me that way," Olivia snickered. Honestly, that man was insatiable. Then again, what man wasn't? After towel drying, they dressed in separate rooms, lest they never finish getting ready. This time, it was Lincoln who decided to prepare breakfast, and would not take no for an answer. While Olivia cleaned up the trail of clothing they left that night, trying her best not to blush as each individual article of clothing would bring up a pleasant memory, she became concerned when she heard loud clanging and cursing coming from the kitchen.

As soon as she was finished, she walked over to the kitchen cautiously and raised an eyebrow at his deer-caught-in-headlights look. "Um, I think I broke your kettle..." Lincoln said with an apologetic expression.

"That's alright, I've never really been much of a tea drinker anyway," Olivia answered. "What exactly where you doing that you broke my kettle?" She asked curiously.

"Nothing with the kettle, I knocked it over with the frying pan..." he explained.

"So what's for breakfast?" She asked while she helped clean up the mess.

"Frenchtoast!" Lincoln answered with a grin. After struggling with his endeavor, Lincoln managed to not only cook great tasting frenchtoast, but also not break anything else! He felt pretty accomplished and even received a kiss as a reward.

"Good job Linc, this is pretty good! I just might keep you around," Olivia winked.

"See? I'm not just excellent in bed, but in the kitchen too..." another lewd grin.

"Okay, Linc, whatever helps you sleep at night..." Olivia shrugged, smirking at his mock-deflated look. She knew it wouldn't hurt him to tell him that, besides, she let him know just how much she enjoyed her time with him last night, that was enough for them. After they finished and sat drinking their orange juice, Olivia watched Lincoln look over some reports before work, the morning light dancing upon his face. She thought what it'd be like waking up with him like this more often, even having Henry with them as well, playing in his crib or napping nearby... She couldn't help but smile. "This is nice," she commented, still watching him.

"What? Eating breakfast together?" He asked, looking up from his report.

"Yes, that... _and _waking up together..." she gave him a knowing look.

"Yeah. We should do it again sometime then," Lincoln smiled back.

"I agree," Olivia matched his grin. "Hey, I'm going to call my mom and see how Henry is doing, okay?"

"Sure, say hello to Marilyn for me," Lincoln said. Olivia nodded and went over to her phone, cursing her wireless phone for failing her... why did technology hate her? After a few moments of waiting for her mother to pick up, she finally heard her mother's sleepy voice. She _really _hoped Henry wasn't being too much for her... she wasn't so young anymore.

"_This is Marilyn Dunham," _Olivia's mother said.

"Mom, it's me," Olivia greeted her.

"_Oh! Good morning honey! Isn't it a little early..." _she trailed off. _"Ah, I assume things went well with your date with Mr. Lee?"_ she teased.

"Yes, mom, things went well..." Olivia grinned into the phone. "Very well," she amended.

"_That's good to hear honey! Did you use-"_

"YES, mother, we did..." Olivia interrupted, sighing softly. Ever since her mother was told of Olivia's not-so-admirable-adventures-with-a-man-at-the-bar, she wouldn't let that drop!

"_I'm sorry dear."_ No she wasn't._ "Well I'm happy that things are going so well,"_ Olivia could hear the smile in her mom's voice.

"How is Henry doing? I hope he hasn't been too much trouble for you..."

"_Oh no, not at all! I love my grandson! I'm happy to care for him while you can't. I'm a little unused to waking up so many times in the night to give him his little bottle, but it's fine. He's just fine," _Marilyn answered. She really did sound happy. Olivia knew the best nutrition Henry could get, and the best way to connect with him, was if she fed him herself. She wasn't about to do what she did last night too often, no matter how much Lincoln whined, her son was very important to her and she knew he was important to Lincoln as well.

"Do you want me to go get him?" Olivia asked. The truth was, she missed her son already, even if it had only been a handful of hours since she last saw him.

"_No, that's okay, I'll bring him over to your work a little later, okay? Don't worry so much,"_ Marilyn told her.

"Alright, thanks again, mom!" Olivia smiled. They ended the call and Olivia turned, she blinked when she noticed that Lincoln had been watching her all this time but hadn't moved. "Hey, are you okay?" she asked him, a little concerned.

Lincoln sat and watched her for a little longer, his expression a curious mix of seriousness and affection. "I love you," he told her after the pause. Olivia tilted her head to the side a little, curious why he'd suddenly tell her that so seriously.

"I know, I love you too," Olivia smiled, pleased that it was so easy to say now; she still felt a pleasant, fluttery sensation whenever she said it. She walked over to him and he scooted his chair back, giving her room to sit on his lap. Olivia put her arms around him and kissed him soundly. "What's this about?" she asked him.

"I just want you to know," he shrugged. "I really do," he felt a little helpless. What he felt was a deep feeling, a feeling that scared him, a feeling that he felt a little anxious about. It was as if he wanted something more but didn't quite know what yet. Maybe in time he would figure it out.

"Lincoln," she moved her fingers along his jaw again, studying him. "I know it took me a while to admit it to you – and myself, - but I love you too, I just want you to know that that's not going to change," she told him just as seriously. She just hoped he wasn't going to turn into one of those over-protective boyfriends that try to keep everything remotely exciting from happening to their girlfriends... she'd kick his ass. Lincoln grinned gleefully and leaned over to kiss her again.

Once they had cleaned up after breakfast, they went to their respective cars and drove to work separately. With one last kiss where no one would see them, again trying to not have Lincoln seem like he was playing favorites, they went to their separate desks. Charlie was deep at work on something in his computer when Olivia walked over. She smiled and pat him on the shoulder. "Hey there, Charlie," she greeted him.

Charlie blinked up at her and smiled. "Well hey there! You're looking well rested," Charlie told her. Olivia smiled and nodded in agreement and went to work. After a while, he had to ask. "So? Did you two have a good time last night?" Charlie asked playfully, taking a drink from his tea. Olivia looked over and simply smiled, not answering his question. "The two of you came in at the same time... you're here pretty early, earlier than normal... is there any specific reason for that?" he continued, lifting an eyebrow. Still, she said nothing. "You know, I could probably get it out of Lincoln... I'm sure he'd tell me," he grinned. Probably not, Lincoln was just as incredibly stubborn as she was. She didn't need to know that.

"Why are you so interested, Charlie? What? Is your love-life - or lack thereof – so bad you have to get off on other people's private affairs?" She said jokingly.

"Damn, kiddo, that stings... I was just curious," he lifted his hands. "Fine, fine, if you don't want to tell me, if you really think I'm that kind of person, I see how it is... I see what you think of me," Charlie said, pretending to be heart-broken and turned around. He knew that she knew he was playing, but this kind of thing always seemed to inspire her to talk about.

"We ate, we danced, we kissed... and we woke up together, in that order" Olivia admitted, giving him the short _short _version. Charlie spun around in his seat, a couple different emotions filtered through his eyes until it settled on two. Lincoln must have found his little gift he left him. "What?" she asked him when she saw the amused but also slightly concerned look in his eyes.

"Nothing. I just hope this isn't some temporary thing, you know? Lincoln was annoying enough when he was moping around for you," he explained. Okay, so maybe he was butting in a little but they were his best friends.

"It's not temporary, trust me," Olivia assured him. Funny, she hadn't noticed before that Lincoln was pining for her... well, besides that first kiss so long ago, but at least toward her, he had been pretty decent about hiding his feelings.

Meanwhile, Astrid Farnsworth walked up to her Chief's office with a purpose, her hold on the folder she held tightening a bit, hoping this wouldn't all go down badly. "Colonel Lee, do you have a moment?" Astrid asked by Lincoln's door.

Lincoln looked up from his work and nodded. "Sure, come in," he motioned for her and she walked in. Lincoln eyed the mission folder in her hand and wondered what she had to say.

"Sir, I believe we've found what you were looking for," she said, handing him the folder. Lincoln took it and opened it, reading it's contents. The device he was looking for, the one the former Secretary used to travel between universes quickly, including the smaller devices, like the one Olivia had used to return. They had been found! "Sir, you should know that the machine former Secretary Walter Bishop used is still a prototype and highly unstable," she warned him after seeing the eager look in his eyes.

"Understood. Where did you find it?" He asked, setting the folder down and leaning back in his seat.

"The former Secretary had a hidden room in his lab under Liberty Tower. We found it after an agent accidentally knocked over a potted plant, revealing a hidden panel" she explained.

"Good work, Astrid," Lincoln smiled, encouraging the usually straight-laced agent to loosen up a bit. Astrid looked uncertain for a moment before a hesitant smile tilted her lips up for a moment, then she nodded and left the room. This was good news! Lincoln decided to call in Charlie and Olivia, explain what had happened and his plans for it all. Lincoln stood and walked over to his window, waiting until either Charlie or Olivia looked up at him.

Olivia felt eyes on her and looked around to see who it was. Lincoln stood with a serious but still cheerful look on her face, watching them, and gestured for she and Charlie to come up. "The _Colonel _wants to talk to us," Olivia told Charlie.

"You just won't stop rubbing that in will ya? Yeah, so I didn't get promoted... _again_..." Charlie shrugged.

"Sorry," Olivia laughed and followed her partner to Lincoln's office.

"What's up, boss?" Charlie asked as he and Olivia walked in. They found a seat and sat, giving their leader their undivided attention.

"Either of you up for a field-trip?" A smile on his lips but his eyes serious.

"A _field-trip_? Are we going to a museum, teacher?" Olivia asked playfully, raising an eyebrow.

"Not exactly. But we have means of crossing to the other universe..." Lincoln trailed off, hoping they'd pick up on what he was meaning to do.

"What?" Charlie blinked. "Why would you want to go to the other universe?" he questioned.

"I think it might be a good idea to go over there and explain everything to them, maybe offer some help... neither of our universes are really to blame for all of this in my opinion, it was all just one huge accident. I think if we work together, there's no reason both universes can't be saved," Lincoln explained.

"So let me get this straight, you want to go to the other universe, contact the other Fringe team, tell them this has all been just one big mistake, and see if they're willing to kiss and make up?" Olivia asked a little incredulously.

"Basically," Lincoln nodded. He held his breath as his friends became silent, no doubt thinking about this.

While Charlie looked thoughtful, Olivia had an uncertain expression. She sat and thought about this silently. While she thought it might be a good idea, the thought of leaving Henry here for God knew how long with her mother, just to go over there and possibly be imprisoned for all the crap she and others from her universe had caused... it didn't sit too well. However, she agreed with Lincoln, that much was sure. They had to find a way to save both universes... but first, both universes had to be willing to find that way. "Sounds good to me," Olivia shrugged.

"Yeah, I think it's a good idea, someone needs to tell those folks about Secre- _former _Secretary Bishop..." Charlie agreed.

"Good," Lincoln let out a breath, relieved his best friends and best agents agreed with him.

"Lincoln, I'm not sure that I should go..." Olivia suddenly said, her brows furrowing in anxiety. "I don't want to leave Henry here and we can't possibly take him on such a potentially dangerous mission... Linc, what if we don't return?" She said, the grip she had on the arms of her chair tightening.

"You don't have to go if you feel so stronger about this, 'Liv, I'm not about to force you, but..." as much as he really didn't want to admit this... "Henry's biological father should know about... his son..." he managed out. Peter Bishop. He snorted inwardly. Somehow, it felt difficult to admit that _he _wasn't the boy's father, after all, he was there when the child was born, cared for him like he would his own flesh and blood. But the truth was the truth. He wondered what kind of a man Peter Bishop was... if Olivia fell for him, if _both _Olivia's fell for him, he must not be such a bad guy, right? Still, he wasn't looking forward to meeting him exactly.

"I know... he should know..." Olivia reluctantly agreed. While she was terrified of what Peter might think, even possibly abandon the very _idea _of having a son, with _her_, but she knew he had to know. "Just... apologize to him, and the other Olivia for me, okay?" she asked.

"Of course," Lincoln nodded. They shared a look of understanding before Lincoln's serious face returned. "We should get going, the sooner we go and get this over-with, the sooner we can start figuring out a way to fix both our universes," he said as he stood. Olivia and Charlie followed suit.

"I'm going too, to see the both of you off," Olivia said, not leaving room for an argument.

"Sounds good to me," Charlie smiled. "So where is this machine? Did you have someone bring it over?" he asked as they neared the garage.

"No, we left it where we found it," Lincoln answered.

"Why's that?" Olivia questioned. "Wouldn't it be easier to just bring it here? That way we could study it further?"

"That may be true, but our sources say that there's a strong possibility that the machine might open a portal or something like it wherever it is at the moment... if it were to open on the other side and the machine was in Fringe HQ at the time..."

"I see what you mean, good thinking," Charlie muttered, shuddering at the idea of appearing on the other side and having dozens of weapons pointed at them. They took one car there, figuring if Olivia wasn't coming that she could just drive back with that car. When they got there, there were still a few Fringe agents walking around. They didn't need to show them their show-me, since the other agents knew the team well. Once inside they followed the familiar path to Walter Bishop's underground laboratory.

"The panel should be... here!" Lincoln knelt down by a wall and stared at the panel for a little bit.

"What?" Olivia questioned, wondering why he hadn't opened it yet.

"It requires a pass-code..." he answered. "Lemme see..." he tried different things, none seemed to work.

"Try 'Peter'..." Olivia suggested. Lincoln nodded in understanding and did so. The hidden wall slid open. They walked in an marveled at the rather large gate-like machine, standing proud and tall in the center of the room. "So he did it? He found a way to open and close holes to the other universe?"

"Doesn't that _damage _the other universe though?" Charlie asked.

"I don't think Bishop cared about that," Olivia frowned.

"Well, right now it's the quickest form of transportation before we figure out how to do this quickly _and_ safely..." Lincoln reasoned, running a hand down the metallic frame of the machine in scrutiny. They would use this machine to travel over to that side quickly, and then the little devices Olivia told them about to return. Olivia explained how to use the little gun looking devices again as Lincoln messed with the controls of the machine. Luckily, it was rather easy to figure out.

Once the machine burst into life, an event horizon splashing the room with purple-ish blue color, they knew there was no turning back. Lincoln turned to Olivia, noting her almost helpless look. "'Liv?" he said, walking toward her. Olivia smiled weakly, brushing her fear away and locked eyes with him. What if she never saw him again? The negative thoughts churning inside her mind frustrated her, she _couldn't _think like that. As always, Lincoln seemed to be able to tell and pulled her close, cocooning her in his strong arms.

"Come back to me, you hear me?" Olivia said, taking his face in her hands and looking deep into his eyes.

"I promise," Lincoln kissed her forehead and hugged her tightly before he reluctantly pulled away.

"Take care of each other," Olivia ordered them, looking at them both.

"Yes _boss_," Charlie teased as he walked over. "We'll be back, 'Livie... hang tight for us," Charlie gave Olivia a hug of his own.

"Will do," Olivia agreed.

Olivia watched on, watching her best friends disappear through the "gate". It took everything she had in her not to jump in and join them, but she couldn't and _wouldn't _do that to Henry. Would they make it? Would the other universe's counterparts of themselves believe them? Help them? Would everything be alright? Who knew? Only time would be able to tell. For now, with uncertainty, came hope. Hope for the future. Hope for everything.

Hope.

_The End_...

* * *

><p><strong>End AN**: Well, there it is, the end, that's it! No more! ...Well okay, if enough people ask, I MIGHT write a sequel. I have a vague idea for one anyway, I could expand on it if I'm persuaded. Go ahead, try to convince me, I dare ya! This was fun to write and I enjoyed the trip... I hope everyone else did too! Now be the lovely, awesome readers you are and let me know what you thought!

Shout-Outs:

**Fallen Heart**: I might consider it. I thought the dirty talk was a little occ? Maybe, I dunno... glad you liked it!

**katiekayx**: I'm glad you think so! The closeness was fun to write ;)

**Caithrine Glidewell**: Thanks! I'm probably you'd like my M version, I'm not really the type to be into vulgar words and stuff like that, so it'd be tasteful in my opinion. I may consider it sometime.

**zeusfluff**: I'm happy you liked it and I hope you enjoyed the story!


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